Posts Tagged ‘maria sharapova’
Saturday, March 30th, 2013
We’re coming to the second busiest sports month of the year. April. Where has March gone? I know.
Anyways. It is a huge weekend for the Edmonton Oilers as they will be hosting their two western Canadian foes– the Vancouver Canucks tonight (CBC, 8:00 p.m.) and the Calgary Flames on Easter Monday (Sportsnet, 7:30 p.m.).
With 15 games left on the schedule, the Oilers are three points back of the St. Louis Blues for a playoff spot. That means every five games, they will have to pick up a point on the Blues, and hope they are slightly better than three other teams that are in front of them– the Columbus Blue Jackets, Dallas Stars and Nashville Predators.
Here are the other events I’ll be watching this weekend:
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Tags: 2013 world men's curling championship, aku koste, andrew mccutchen, andy murray, boston bruins, brady clark, buffalo sabres, c.j. fair, calgary flames, carl hall, carmelo anthony, chicago cubs, christian laetner, cleanthony hall, david ferrer, david murdoch, dell curry, deshaun thomas, Edmonton Oilers, erik murphy, garrett jones, glenn robinson iii, grant hill, houston astros, jarome iginla, jim boeheim, junior cadougan, Kobe Bryant, los angeles lakers, malcolm armstead, maria sharapova, mike krzyzewski, nik stauskas, pedro alvarez, pittsburgh pirates, rick pitino, ron baker, russ smith, sacramento kings, serena williams, seth curry, sven michel, texas rangers, thomas vanek, tommy haas, trey burke, university of duke blue devils, university of florida gators, university of marquette golden eagles, university of michigan state spartans, university of michigan wolverines, university of ohio state buckeyes, university of syracuse orangemen, university of wichita state shockers, Vancouver Canucks, vander blue
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, Curling, MLB, More, NBA, NHL, University Sports |
Saturday, March 16th, 2013
Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir (David Carmichael, Wikimedia Commons)
The 2013 World Figure Skating Championships wrap up in London, Ontario today with the ice dance competition (CBC, 2:00 p.m.) an the ladies’ long program (www.cbcsports.ca, 8:00 p.m.).
Canada has a very good shot at two more medals Saturday. Olympic champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir of London, Ontario are in second place in the ice dance, while Sherwood Park resident Kaetlyn Osmond is in fourth place after the women’s short program.
If you watched the championship on Friday, you would know that the quality of skating has been poor for a World Figure Skating Championship.
Patrick Chan of Ottawa was completely dreadful last night in winning the men’s competition, but came away with the gold medal. After a great start where he executed the quad, he fell on two triples, double footed another jump and seemed exhausted in the latter half of his performance. At the end of the day, Chan defended his world title.
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Tags: aliona savchenko, boston bruins, brandon sutter, carey price, caroline wozniacki, Edmonton Oilers, eric radford, eve muirhead, kaetlyn osmond, Kobe Bryant, los angeles lakers, maria sharapova, maxim trankov, meagan duhamel, michel therrien, mike d'antoni, montreal canadiens, nashville predators, new jersey devils, novak djokovic, patrick chan, Pittsburgh Penguins, rachel homan, RAFAEL NADAL, robin szolkowy, sacramento kings, scott moir, tatiana volosozhar, tessa virtue, women's world curling championship, world figure skating championships
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, Curling, More, NBA, NHL |
Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013
Sloane Stephens (Keith Allison, Wikimedia Commons)
I know Serena Williams was not 100% percent last night. She was having immense back and ankle issues, and lacked positivism on the court as portrayed by her slamming her racket in the second set.
But even though Williams was not at a hundred percent, she was still unable to beat the 29th ranked player in the world, fellow American Sloane Stephens in the quarterfinals of the Australian Open.
Stephens showed significantly more patience and poise in downing the more experienced veteran, 3-6, 7-5, 6-4 in Melbourne last night. However, the schedule will remain difficult for Stephens, as she plays world number one and defending Australian Open champion Victoria Azarenka of Belarus in the semi-finals tonight and then either Li Na of China or Maria Sharapova in Saturday’s final.
In men’s action, it should come as no surprise that David Ferrer of Spain is playing Novak Djokovic of Serbia in one semi-final and Roger Federer of Switzerland is playing Andy Murray of Great Britain in the other semi-final. However I strongly believe Ferrer has the speed, experience and footwork to upset Djokovic in the middle of the night.
Tags: andy murray, australian open, david ferrer, li na, maria sharapova, novak djokovic, ROGER FEDERER, sloane stephens, victoria azarenka
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Monday, January 21st, 2013
Roger Federer (Vinod Divakaran, Wikimedia Commons)
Milos Raonic may be ranked 13th at the Australian Open, but he has a lot of work to do to crack the top five in men’s tennis.
On Sunday, Raonic lost 6-4, 7-6, 6-2 in straight sets to the great Roger Federer in the fourth round of the Australian Open.
Federer made Raonic run and exploit his weak backhand. The bottom line is Federer’s experience and maturity paid off and despite Raonic’s 19 aces, Raonic was unable to win many long points against the four time Australian Open champion.
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Tags: agnieszka radwanska, andy murray, australian open, david ferrer, ekaterina makarova, jeremy chardy, jo-wilfried tsonga, li na, maria sharapova, milos raonic, nicolas almagro, novak djokovic, ROGER FEDERER, serena williams, sloane stephens, svetlana kuznetsova, tomas berdych, victoria azarenka
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Wednesday, January 16th, 2013
Jie Zheng (Robbie Mendelson, Wikimedia Commons)
The Australians are struggling mightily at the very first grand slam tournament of 2013.
In fact, the only Aussies left are two unseeded men–Bernard Tomic and James Duckworth. Ironically, the Aussies have the same number of players left as the Canadians, who have Milos Raonic and Jesse Levine still in the mix.
On Tuesday night, Samantha Stosur, who won the 2011 U.S. Open over Serena Williams, lost to China’s Jie Zheng 6-4, 1-6, 7-5 in a complete colossal collapse by the former major champion. Stosur was once up 5-2 in the third set, but lost five consecutive games, including three games where Zheng broke Stosur. I know Stosur seemed to have some ankle issues leading into the tournament, but I feel a major reason why she lost was more mental than physical.
Meanwhile, the Australian Open is set to get juicy with Ana Ivanovic playing Jelena Jankovic and Venus Williams playing Maria Sharapova in the third round.
Tags: ana ivanovic, australian open, bernard tomic, james duckworth, jelena jankovic, jesse levine, jie zheng, maria sharapova, milos raonic, samantha stosur, venus williams
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Saturday, January 12th, 2013
Eric Decker (Jeffrey Beall, Wikimedia Commons)
Some call this weekend the best weekend during the NFL season. Others call it the elite eight. There are great expectations for excellent football this weekend after last week produced anti-climactic contests.
In the AFC, the Denver Broncos (13-3) will host the Baltimore Ravens (10-6) in a divisional playoff game (Saturday, CBS, 2:30 p.m.). The Broncos had no problems beating the Ravens in the regular season, beating them 34-17 in Baltimore on December 16. Eric Decker had 133 yards receiving and Knowshon Moreno had 115 yards rushing in a game the Broncos once led 31-3 after three quarters. The Broncos have won 11 straight, while the Ravens beat Indianapolis 24-9 last week.
Sunday’s AFC game could see another blowout as the New England Patriots (12-4) face the Houston Texans (12-4) (CBS, 2:30 p.m.). In the regular season, the Patriots hammered the Texans 42-14 on December 10 as Tom Brady had four touchdown passes. Patriots kicker Stephen Gostkowski led the NFL with 153 points and Texans defensive end J.J. Watt led the NFL with 20.5 sacks. The Patriots had a NFL best +226 this season, while the Texans beat the Bengals 19-13 last week in the AFC Wildcard.
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Tags: alex smith, atlanta falcons, australian open, baltimore ravens, colin kaepernick, denver broncos, eric decker, frank gore, green bay packers, houston texans, j.j. watt, knowshon moreno, maria sharapova, new england patriots, novak djokovic, olga puchkova, paul-henri mathieu, san francisco 49ers, seattle seahawks, stephen gostkowski, tom brady
Posted in ATP World Tour, More, NFL |
Thursday, September 6th, 2012
David Ferrer (Jose Porras, Wikimedia Commons)
We now know who are in the final four at the U.S. Open.
On Thursday in a riveting afternoon and evening of tennis, David Ferrer of Spain and Novak Djokovic of Serbia booked their tickets for Saturday.
Ferrer won what could be considered one of the best matches of the year in defeating Janko Tipsarevic of Serbia, 6-3, 6-7, 2-6, 6-3, 7-6 in five outstanding sets.
Djokovic meanwhile beat Juan Martin del Potro in three straight sets, 6-2, 7-6, 6-4. The second set will go down in the history books as one of the greatest sets ever played, with Djokovic winning in 85 minutes. The long rallies and degree of difficulty in shot making by both players was legendary and historic.
Djokovic will now play Ferrer in one semi-final while Andy Murray of Great Britain will play Tomas Berdych in the other semi-final. Berdych beat the great Roger Federer last night.
In women’ action Friday, Serena Williams will play French Open finalist Sara Errani of Italy, while Victoria Azarenka of Belarus will play Maria Sharapova of Russia.
Tags: andy murray, david ferrer, janko tipsarevic, juan martin del potro, maria sharapova, novak djokovic, ROGER FEDERER, sara errani, serena williams, tomas berdych, u.s. open, victoria azarenka
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Saturday, September 1st, 2012
On Monday the Edmonton Eskimos will play the Calgary Stampeders at McMahon Stadium in the Labour Day Classic.
Even though the Eskimos are two points ahead of the Stampeders in the CFL Western Division, my gut is telling me the Stampeders will be coming away with the victory. Why am of I of this opinion? Well three reasons.
Home teams have done better this season to date. The teams that have hosted games are 20-13 so far this season.
The Eskimos never do well on the second game of a two game road trip. The second worst game the Eskimos had this season was in Winnipeg after the team won an impressive game in British Columbia. This factor smells trouble.
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Tags: bruce springsteen, Calgary Stampeders, chicago cubs, Edmonton Eskimos, james blake, laura robson, lleyton hewitt, maria sharapova, marion bartoli, milos raonic, nadia petrova, petra kvitova, samantha stosur, san francisco giants, Saskatchewan Roughriders, tim burke, tim lincecum, u.s. open, winnipeg blue bombers
Posted in ATP World Tour, CFL, MLB, More |
Friday, June 29th, 2012
The Canadian Football League commences this weekend.
On Saturday night the Edmonton Eskimos host a familiar person to town. Ricky Ray will be quarterbacking not the Eskimos however at Commonwealth Stadium, but the Toronto Argonauts (Saturday, TSN, 5pm).
In a very controversial off season deal, Eskimos GM Eric Tillman traded Ray for quarterback Steven Jyles, kicker Grant Shaw and a first round pick in 2012.
In the Canadian Football League I thought you needed a solid quarterback to win football games. Ricky Ray is a great quarterback and the Eskimos let him go. Apparently Tillman didn’t get the memo.
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Tags: 2012 olympic games, andy roddick, angela whyte, Calgary Stampeders, david ferrer, Edmonton Eskimos, euro 2012, fernando torres, grant shaw, jessica zelinka, johan santana, kim clijsters, los angeles dodgers, maria sharapova, Mario Balotelli, montreal alouettes, new york mets, nikkita holder, novak djokovic, perdita felicien, phylicia george, priscilla lopes-schliep, Ricky Ray, ROGER FEDERER, steven jyles, toronto argonauts, Wimbledon
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, CFL, MLB, More, Soccer |
Saturday, June 9th, 2012
Maria Sharapova (Wikimedia Commons)
Maria Sharapova has won the career grand slam.
On Saturday morning, Sharapova, now the world number one ranked player in the world, defeated Italian Sara Errani 6-3, 6-2 in the women’s final.
Sharapova joins Americans Maureen Connolly, Doris Hart, Shirley Fry, Billie Jean King, Chris Evert, Serena Williams, German Steffi Graf, Australian Margaret Court and Czechoslovakia’s Martina Navratilova as the ten players in history to win Grand Slam titles.
Sharapova became number one in the world with her 6-3, 6-3 victory over Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic on Thursday.
She won her first Grand Slam title at Wimbledon by defeating Serena Williams 6-1, 6-4 in 2004. Sharapova followed that win with a victory at the 2006 U.S. Open over Belgium’s Justine Henin 6-4, 6-4 and a victory at the 2008 Australian Open with a 7-5, 6-3 win over Serbia’s Ana Ivanovic.
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Tags: billie jean king, chris evert, doris hart, french open, margaret court, maria sharapova, martina navratilova, maureen connolly, sara errani, serena williams, shirley fry, steffi graf
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Thursday, June 7th, 2012
Maria Sharapova (Wikimedia Commons)
It was a big win for Maria Sharapova on Thursday.
By defeating Wimbledon Champion Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic 6-3, 6-3, she not only advanced to her first French Open final of her career, but she also passed Belarussian Victoria Azarenka into number one in the world.
Sharapova last was ranked no.1 in the world in 2008. The three-time Grand Slam winner (2004 Wimbledon, 2006 U.S. Open and 2008 Australian Open champion) will also win the career grand slam with a victory on Saturday.
Sharapova’s opponent will be no.21 ranked Sara Errani of Italy, who upset no.6 seeded Samantha Stosur 7-5, 1-6, 6-3 in a topsy-turvy match. Errani won despite having 24 fewer winners than Stosur.
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Tags: bob bryan, daniel nestor, french open, maria kirilenko, maria sharapova, max mirnyi, mike bryan, nadia petrova, petra kvitova, roberta vinci, samantha stosur, sara errani, victoria azarenka
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Wednesday, May 30th, 2012
Aleksandra Wozniak (Wikimedia Commons)
Montreal’s Aleksandra Wozniak had a very dominant performance in the second round of the French Open. But the bad news is she will have to be spectacular to advance to round four.
On Wednesday, Wozniak defeated Jie Zheng of China in straight sets 6-2, 6-4. Wozniak played a nearly perfect first set of tennis. She only committed five unforced errors.
In the second set the play was quite even until Zheng injured her foot and was not running on the court at full speed thereafter.
Zheng was a formidable opponent for Wozniak, as seeded 31st in the world, has been to two grand slam semi-finals.
But now Wozniak has to play the Australian Open champion and world no.1 ranked Victoria Azarenka of Belarus. You know, the one that has spent time in Nikolai Khabibulin’s basement.
Azarenka is 35-3 to date with her only losses coming to Marion Bartoli of France in the quarterfinals in Miami, Maria Sharapova of Russia in the final of Stuttgart and Serena Williams of the United States in the final of Madrid.
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Tags: agnieszka radwanska, aleksandra wozniak, french open, jie zheng, maria sharapova, marion bartoli, nikolai khabibulin, petra martic, serena williams, victoria azarenka
Posted in ATP World Tour, More |
Friday, March 30th, 2012
Patrick Chan (David Carmichael, Wikimedia Commons)
2011 Lionel Conacher Award winner Patrick Chan of Ottawa, Ontario is one step closer to defending his title at the World Figure Skating Championships in Nice, France.
Today, Chan put down a solid short program, and leads the Czech Republic’s Michal Brezina by 1.74 points. Due to the fact the television coverage on CBC is absolutely lousy, the event can be seen live on www.cbcsports.ca or if you have Bold. The final flight of skaters in the men’s event is at 8am and the final flight of skaters in the women’s event is at 1:30pm on Saturday with Alena Leonova of Russia in the lead. In the pairs competition today, Tatiana Volosozhar and Maxim Trankov hammered the strong German pair of Aliona Savchenko and Robin Szolkowy by 8.04 points, but only hung onto the silver medal behind the Germans after a poor short program.
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Tags: agnieszka radwanska, alena leonova, anaheim ducks, andy murray, bryan cochrane, buffalo sabres, calgary flames, Edmonton Oilers, erik karlsson, final four, glenn howard, heath mccormick, jarome iginla, john calipari, kansas jayhawks, kentucky wildcats, louisville cardinals, maria sharapova, marion bartoli, maxim trankov, michal brezina, new orleans hornets, novak djokovic, ohio state buckeyes, Ottawa Senators, patrick chan, Philadelphia Flyers, phonix suns, rick pitino, ryan miller, shannon kleibrink, tatiana volosozhar, thomas dufour, toronto maple leafs, Vancouver Canucks, victoria azarenka, world figure skating championships, world men's curling championship
Posted in Amateur Sports, ATP World Tour, Curling, Home, More, NBA, NHL, Soccer, University Sports |
Saturday, January 28th, 2012
Victoria Azarenka (Nevit Dilmen, Wikimedia Commons)
The Women’s Tennis Association has a new world number one.
On Saturday, Belarussian Victoria Azarenka won her first Grand Slam title in defeating Russian Maria Sharapova 6-3, 6-0.
Azarenka did a great job throughout the Australian Open final in going from defense to offense when she was returning her serve. Once again the unforced errors category basically told the story why Sharapova lost. The 2008 Australian Open champion had 30 unforced errors compared to Azarenka’s 12.
While watching ESPN’s coverage of the match, colour commentator Chris Evert got on my nerves. First, she completely mispronounced Nikolai Khabibulin. She called him KA-BIB-U-LIN before being corrected. Khabibulin is a family friend of Azarenka’s and allowed her to live in his Scottsdale basement when she first arrived to the United States.
Evert stated that “time was running out on Sharapova.” That is nonsense. Sharapova is only 24 years old and is younger than many elite players on tour. Also, she claimed Azarenka has Sharapova’s number. Well she had Sharapova’s number last night, but when you look at their head-to-head statistics, Azarenka leads 4-3.
Tags: australian open, maria sharapova, victoria azarenka, Victoria Azarenka Picture
Posted in Home |
We’re coming to the second busiest sports month of the year. April. Where has March gone? I know.
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