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Brit into doubles final
Watson closes in on Grand Slam glory

Briton Heather Watson is just one match away from Grand Slam glory after reaching the final of the girls' doubles at the French Open.

The 17-year-old and Hungarian partner Timea Babos, seeded three, came through a three-set clash with Ksenia Kirillova and Martina Trevisan 6-2 5-7 10-8.

Three breaks from Watson and Babos were comfortably enough for them to win the first set despite their Italian/Russian opponents breaking them once.

But Kirillova and Trevisan stepped up their game in a 47-minute second set, their four breaks to three seeing them level the scores.

But Watson and Babos dug deep, winning the Champions tie-break 10-8 to book a final clash with second seeds Elena Bogdan and Noppawan Lertcheewakarn.
 

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Federer - Title not certain
Soderling a dangerous opponent, says grand slam great

Roger Federer insists that winning his first French open title is not a certainty, despite the fact that he will not be facing his nemesis Rafael Nadal in the final.

The world number two has a prefect 11-0 record when playing in grand slam finals against opponents other than Nadal, and is 2-5 when facing the Spaniard.

However, he has never won the French Open, although on Sunday he will be competing in his fourth consecutive final.

Sweden's Robin Soderling, who dumped Nadal out of the tournament in the fourth round, stands in his way.

Federer admits that he is relieved to be facing a different player in the final but insists that he still has a tough task ahead of him.

"I can't underestimate Robin," the Swiss player said.
Advantage

"It's nice to see someone else for a change in the final. I've been here before. I don't know if it's an advantage or not, because I've never been able to win."

Federer paid tribute to Soderling's achievement of reaching the final and said that he will try and enjoy the occasion on Sunday.

The 27-year-old believes that the match will be a close fought encounter, even though he is the clear favourite to take the title.

"I'm excited, because I know that these moments will not happen every single day," Federer added.

"(What) I'll try and do is focus on the match. I'll do my best, play my best tennis on clay, and I hope that I can win the cup.

"Clearly I'm the favourite but this doesn't mean much (in) such a final with pressure on both sides. He doesn't know what a grand slam final is but he's got nothing to lose. This is a very open match.

"I totally respect what he's done so far. What he's done is that he's played great matches. It's an incredible tournament he's had so far. I'm really happy for him that he's managed to come through, to stand out."
 

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French glory for Kuznetsova
Russian wins her first French Open title

Svetlana Kuznetsova claimed the 2009 French Open title after a comfortable 6-4 6-2 victory over fellow Russian Dinara Safina.

The world number one and top seed lost a back-and-forth first set before being dominated in the second by the 2004 US Open champion.

Kuznetsova, who was runner-up at Roland Garros two years ago, overpowered her opponent as Safina collapsed amidst a string of unforced errors in the second set.

The 23-year-old wrapped up the match after Safina served a double-fault at championship point, ensuring that she left the French open as a beaten finalist for the second successive year.
Nerves

Kuznetsova, playing in her first grand slam final since the 2007 US Open, elected to serve first after winning the toss but was immediately made to regret her decision as Safina broke in the opening game.

However, the seventh seed hit back straight away with a break of her own as the two compatriots looked nervous in the opening exchanges.

Safina then dropped her serve at a crucial point when she failed to reach a Kuznetsova cross-court backhand that died quicker than she expected on the clay surface.

Serving for the set, Kuznetsova was broken to love as the nerves returned to her play. However, she recovered to make it three breaks of serve in a row, clinching the set with a fierce backhand winner.

Having fallen behind, Safina became frustrated with herself in the second set as her unforced error count increased at a rapid rate.

The world number one somehow survived unscathed until the sixth game when Kuznetsova grabbed the decisive break to move within two games of victory.

Nightmare

In the next game, Safina's nightmare continued as she hit three consecutive shots beyond the baseline before losing the match on her own serve.

The new champion paid tribute to her opponent afterwards, saying that her tennis is not at the level of Safina's, but she pulled out the victory by staying calm under pressure.

"Today, when I was coming out on court I knew that everything would be alright," Kuznetsova said. "I was pretty calmed down.

"(Safina) is better than me at the moment, she is the world number one, but she was too tight."
 

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Federer wins French Open
World number two completes career Grand Slam, moves level with Sampras on 14 majors

Roger Federer won his maiden French Open title with a straight-sets victory over Robin Soderling.

The Swiss claimed a 6-1 7-6 6-4 success to complete a career Grand Slam and move level with Pete Sampras on 14 major titles.
 

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Federer enjoys 'magical moment'
Swiss maestro proves clay prowess with French Open success

Tennis Betting - Wimbledon 2009 Winner

Federer 7/4, Nadal 7/4, Murray 7/2, Djokovic 15/2, Tsonga 10/1, Del Potro 28/1 or Soderling 33/1.
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Federer enjoys 'magical moment'

Federer: Paris triumph completed career Grand Slam

It might be the greatest victory of my career...It is a magical moment.

Roger Federer
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An emotional Roger Federer was delighted to win his maiden French Open title.

The Swiss overcame Robin Soderling 6-1 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 at Roland Garros to become the sixth man to complete a career Grand Slam.

He joined a select group containing Fred Perry, Don Budge, Roy Emerson, Rod Laver and Andre Agassi as the only men to have won all four Grand Slam events.

Agassi, the only other member of the sextet to have achieved the feat on four different surfaces, was on hand to present him with the French Open trophy.

Federer is now level on 14 major titles with Pete Sampras and, at just 27-years-old, appears almost certain to make that record his own in the future.

"It might be the greatest victory of my career," said Federer, who had lost the three previous French Open finals to Rafael Nadal.

"It takes away so much pressure. Now, I can play in peace for the rest of my career.

"Nobody will never tell me again that I have not won Roland Garros.

"It feels good to be on the podium as the winner for once. It is a magical moment.
Meant to be

"I do feel like it was meant to be. I was in desperate situations this tournament. The terrible rain, the swirly winds and the dangerous opponent (today) was just part of it.

"I was able to handle it for two weeks.

"It was very hard mentally for me to stay in the match. My mind was always wondering, 'What if, what if?' You can't help it. They (the thoughts) kept on coming back.

"I was very nervous at the beginning of the third set because I realised how close I was. And the last game was almost unplayable. I was just hoping to serve some good serves and hoping he was going to make four errors. It was that bad.

"It was an emotional rollercoaster for me."

On drawing level with Sampras, he added: "That almost gets forgotten - it's an incredible feeling reaching 14 and not being derailed by losing Grand Slam finals to Rafa (at Roland Garros and Wimbledon last year and the Australian Open this year).

"Equalling Pete's record here in Paris is unbelievable. And Andre (Agassi), the last man to win all four Majors, giving me the trophy seems just very fitting in a way."

Soderling, who beat four-time defending champion Nadal en route to the final, paid tribute to the new champion.

"Roger is a really worthy winner," said the Swede, who has now lost 10 times to Federer.

Best in history

"To me he is the best player in history so he really deserves to win here at the French as well.

"I think the match was what I expected, I played him so many times.

"I did not play aggressive enough. Every time I play against him, it's what I end up saying.

"Now I am learning that it's not that I play bad, it is that he makes me play bad."

Soderling, however, was upbeat about his future after reaching his first Grand Slam final.

"I always believe in myself but this gives me a lot more confidence," he added.

"Of course, beating Nadal was very nice for me. I think I made what was supposed to be impossible, beat him on clay in best of five, no one else had ever made it."
 

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Fed earns historic Paris win
World number two wins French Open to complete career Grand Slam

Roger Federer finally won his maiden French Open title with a straight-sets victory over Robin Soderling.

The Swiss claimed a 6-1 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 success at Roland Garros to complete a career Grand Slam and move level with Pete Sampras on 14 major titles.

The 27-year-old joined Fred Perry, Don Budge, Roy Emerson, Rod Laver and Andre Agassi as the only men to have won all four Grand Slam events.

He collapsed to his knees on the Paris clay and began to cry after clinching the one major title to have previously eluded him, having lost each of the last three finals to Rafael Nadal.

Federer had raced through the opening set in 23 minutes, losing just one point on his own serve, as his Swedish opponent initially appeared overawed by the occasion.

But 23rd seed Soderling, who beat Nadal, Nikolay Davydenko and Fernando Gonzalez en route to the final, improved thereafter.
Intruder

It remained on serve and, as light rain began to fall in Paris, a dramatic incident at the start of the fourth game briefly held up play.

An intruder leapt on court and brandished a flag in Federer's face before attempting to put a cap on his head. As security came on court, the man turned around, leapt over the net before being rugby-tackled.

Federer appeared slightly shaken by the incident at first and lost the next game to love, although it was on Soderling's serve.

The next three games went with serve as the rain continued to come down steadily and the match supervisor was huddled court-side, appearing ready to stop play.

Soderling twice kept his composure when serving to stay in the set and took it to a tie-break. By now umbrellas were up everywhere in the crowd.

Tie-break

Federer opened a 4-1 lead in the tie-break with three consecutive aces, moving to set point with a superb drop shot and then sent down a fourth ace to clinch the set.

He immediately took control of the third set by breaking Soderling's serve in the opening game.

And Federer remained resolute on his own delivery until, serving for the match at 5-4 ahead, he fell 30-40 behind.

But a confident volley forced duece, and Federer closed out victory in one hour and 55 minutes on his first match point when Soderling netted a service return.
 

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Fed frightened by intruder
Grand Slam king left feeling 'uncomfortable'

French Open champion Roger Federer admitted he was 'given a fright' after being confronted by an intruder midway through his final against Robin Soderling.

Federer was preparing to receive a Soderling serve in the fourth game of the second set when a spectator, wearing a top bearing the word 'Switzerland' on its front, entered the court.

The intruder jumped over the net and ran towards the world number two holding what appeared to be a flag of Spanish football team Barcelona.

He then attempted to place his cap on the head of Federer, who backed away nervously behind the service line.

Security were slow to react before a guard hauled the man to the ground. The incident was the only thing that threatened to derail Federer's charge to victory but he admitted it was a "touch scary".
Stupid

"I don't know what happened but all of a sudden I heard the crowd, I looked over and he jumped over the fence. That gave me a fright seeing him so close right away," recalled Federer, who has also been confronted by intruding fans at Wimbledon and in a tournament in Montreal.

"It's a good thing it's happened to me before. But it definitely felt uncomfortable once he came close to me."

Federer, who overcame his plucky Swedish opponent 6-1 7-6 (7-1) 6-4 at Roland Garros, did manage to laugh it off.

"Normally they always look at me and go, 'I'm so sorry I have to do this', because they always have some sort of reason for it!" he added.

"I remember the English guy (at Wimbledon) was actually quite funny. This guy here looked at me and I was not sure what he wanted. It seemed like he wanted to give me something. So I was okay, because I saw he wasn't pulling for anything stupid."

Soderling added: "It wasn't great to see. I think the security were as surprised as we were. "It's very bad that these things can happen. It's a shame."

Neither the International Tennis Federation (ITF) nor the French Tennis Federation (FFT) have made an official comment regarding the incident but an investigation is expected to be launched.
 

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Nadal's Wimbledon wait
Champion battling in bid to defend crown

Rafael Nadal is set to announce in the coming days whether he will be able to defend his Wimbledon title.

The world number one has been troubled by a knee injury and was forced to pull out of this week's AEGON Championships at Queen's Club because of fitness concerns.

Nadal himself admitted he is battling to be ready for Wimbledon, which gets underway on June 22.

And a statement on his official website confirmed the Spaniard is having tests to determine whether he can compete at the grasscourt event.

"Rafa is in Barcelona today and tomorrow undergoing medical tests on his knees," the statement read.

"We will inform through his website the results and his participation at Wimbledon."

Nadal saw his bid for a fifth successive title at the French Open ended by Robin Soderling in the fourth round.
 

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Federer takes time out
French Open champion pulls out of Wimbledon warm-up

Roger Federer has withdrawn from the Gerry Weber Open - his usual grass-court warm-up for Wimbledon.

The world number two has pulled out of the tournament just two days after recording his 14th Grand Slam victory, at the French Open, as he looks to preserve his strength ahead of Wimbledon.

"I sincerely apologize to the tournament organisers, my competitors, and my fans in Germany," Federer said.

"I only hope they will understand that I still feel emotionally overwhelmed and exhausted by the incredible events of the past few days.

"It is hard for me to admit, but I simply cannot imagine giving my best effort in another tournament right away and I don't want to risk injury if I am not 100 per cent prepared. I need to rest and recuperate."
 

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Djokovic back to winning ways
World number four progresses at Gerry Weber Open

Novak Djokovic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga both eased into the second round of the Halle tournament on Tuesday.

Second seed Djokovic ousted Italian Simone Bolelli 7-5 6-2 to set up a second-round clash with France's Florent Serra.

The world number four needed a solitary break in the first set to clinch it before breaking his opponent twice in the second to wrap up victory in 84 minutes.

"For the first match on grass I played quite well," the 22-year-old said after his win. "I was coming from clay with a lot of sliding and you have to adjust. I think I did it alright."

Djokovic, who surprisingly lost to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the third round of the French Open, said he had now moved on from that defeat.

"My game was really bad that day. But you have to reset your psychology and move on," he added.
Contenders

World number nine Tsonga also progressed with a 7-5 6-2 win over Fabrice Santoro and will next meet experienced German Tommy Haas.

The big-serving Frenchman initially found it hard going against the 36-year-old veteran before he finally broke his compatriot at 6-5 after his opponent had saved three set points and he grabbed two more breaks in the second set to seal victory.

Philipp Petzschner was one of five Germans to advance on Tuesday, meanwhile, as he upset world number eight Fernando Verdasco 3-6 7-6 6-4.

Misha Zverev had little trouble beating Australian qualifier Joseph Sirianni 6-2 6-4 and Kohlschreiber dropped only six games in a 6-4 6-2 win over fellow German Bjorn Phau.

Nicolas Kiefer crushed Serb Viktor Troicki 6-2 6-1 and Andreas Beck defeated Belgian Christophe Rochus 6-3 6-1.
 

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Henman - Fed the greatest
French Open win tips debate, says British legend

Tim Henman hailed new French Open champion Roger Federer as the best player in history.

Federer's maiden victory at Roland Garros completed a career Grand Slam and moved him level with Pete Sampras on 14 major titles.

At just 27-years-old, he still has plenty of time to make that record his own and Henman - who beat a young Federer at Wimbledon in 2001 - is already convinced of the Swiss player's pre-eminent place among the tennis greats.

"It's the greatest achievement in tennis," Henman told skysports.com.

"He's now equalled Sampras' total of 14 majors - there was always a 'but' with Sampras because he never won the French Open.

"And now Federer's achieved that, I think that he goes down as the best player I played against - and the best player I've ever seen."

Asked how a mythical contest between Federer and Sampras would play out if both men were in their prime on centre court at Wimbledon, Henman remained undecided.

"It is difficult to compare eras," conceded the four-time semi-finalist at the All England club.

"If they were playing in Sampras' era when the courts were fast and the balls quick, then Sampras was a match for anyone because his serve and attacking game was so good.

"But if they played in the conditions of today's era, then I would certainly take Federer (to win)."
 

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Haas leads German onslaught
Seeds sent crashing by home players in Halle


Tommy Haas knocked out fourth seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga as German players dominated play on home soil at the Gerry Weber Open in Halle.

All four of Wednesday's second round matches fell to Germans, with seeded players on the receiving end on each occasion.

The rout was completed by Haas's 6-3 7-6 triumph over the Frenchman as he joined countrymen Mischa Zverev, Philipp Kohlschreiber and wildcard Benjamin Becker in the last eight.

Haas, who led subsequent champion Roger Federer by two sets to love at the French Open last week before going out in five sets, carried his good form over to grass where the world number 41 was soon in charge after breaking Tsonga in the second game.

Enjoying plenty of success at the net, Haas wrapped up the opening set in 26 minutes but the second was an even affair with neither player able to force a break.

But it was Haas who came through 7-3 in the resulting tie-break to move into the quarter-finals.

Zverev dumped out fifth seed Tomas Berdych 3-6 6-2 7-6, winning the tie-break 10-8 with his fourth match point after more than two-and-a-half hours of play.

"I had to change my game completely," admitted the 21-year-old,who will play Haas in Friday's quarter-final.

"I had planned to play serve-and-volley, but after an hour I had not hit a single ball that way, so I made a lot of changes and it worked.

"He made a lot of unforced errors which helped me."

Earlier, Kohlschreiber sent sixth-seeded Russian Dimitri Tursunov crashing with a 6-4 7-6 success, while Becker also won his second round tie with a 6-4 2-6 6-4 victory over eighth-seed compatriot Rainer Schuettler.
 

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Mixed fortunes for Brits
Cavaday earns shock victory, Keothavong crashes out

British number six Naomi Cavaday pulled off one of the best wins of her career at the AEGON Classic on Wednesday.

Cavaday, a wild-card entry from Kent, dispatched 11th seed Tamarine Tanasugarn 7-6 (7-5) 2-6 6-4 in the second round of the Birmingham tournament.

There were nine breaks of serve in a fluctuating match that finally swung Cavaday's way when she broke her veteran Thai opponent in the seventh game of the deciding set and served out for a memorable victory.

"It was definitely a tough one today," said Cavaday. "She has a great record on grass and has a great record full stop.

"The biggest thing today was my belief. I never stopped believing in myself and that's what got me through during the tough times in the match.

"This is my best win in rankings terms as she is 47 in the world. I just love it here."

She will now play Switzerland's Stefanie Voegele, last week's runner-up at the AEGON Trophy in Nottingham, for a place in the quarter-finals.
Keothavong out

But British number one Anne Keothavong, the 12th seed, lost 6-1 7-6 (7-5) to India's Sania Mirza.

Keothavong, the world number 49 who put out Sweden's Sofia Arvidsson in the first round to gain her first victory at Edgbaston for five years, struggled during the first set.

But she looked to have turned the match around when she led 5-2 in the second and twice served to level.

However, the 25-year-old Londoner dropped her serve on both occasions before halting a losing four-game sequence to force a tie-break, which she lost 7-5, with 22-year-old Mirza - a former top-30 player now ranked 98th - saving no fewer than nine of her opponent's 11 break points.

"I didn't expect to play my best tennis at this tournament because it's my first grass-court tournament," said Keothavong.

"I got off to a slow start and I was pretty flat. I had my chances in the second set but I didn't close it out.

"Sania's a quality opponent and she's dangerous when she gets a good strike on the ball.

"You can't guarantee a good performance every day unfortunately and there are plenty of things for me to work on before Eastbourne and Wimbledon."

Canada's Aleksandra Wozniak, the third seed, reached the third round thanks to a 6-4 6-4 win over Olga Govortsova of Belarus.
 

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Rafa still a doubt
Defending champion hopeful of being fit for start of Wimbledon

Rafael Nadal says he will be giving it everything to be fit for the defence of his Wimbledon title, but he is still not sure if he will be able to line-up at SW19.

The world number one's knee injury flared up as he was knocked out of the French Open for the first time at Roland Garros, and it has forced him to miss the Wimbledon warm-up event at Queen's Club.

Nadal is now facing a race against time to be fit for the start of Wimbledon on June 22, and he is still unsure of his fitness.

After having tests on his knee in Barcelona, Nadal said he would be fighting as hard as possible to make Wimbledon.

"I will give 200 percent to be at 100 percent for the most important date in world tennis and the tournament that has always excited me the most," the Spaniard said in a statement.

"I have been playing with pain in my knees for several months and personally I cannot continue like this.

"The pain was limiting me physically in certain movements which meant I was also suffering mentally. I will not take to any court, and certainly not the Wimbledon centre court, unless I know I am 100 percent."

Nadal said he will be travelling to London on June 16 in anticipation of making the tournament, but he must still be a doubt to step out on the court in defence of his title.
 

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Djokovic back to winning ways
World number four progresses at Gerry Weber Open

Novak Djokovic and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga both eased into the second round of the Halle tournament on Tuesday.

Second seed Djokovic ousted Italian Simone Bolelli 7-5 6-2 to set up a second-round clash with France's Florent Serra.

The world number four needed a solitary break in the first set to clinch it before breaking his opponent twice in the second to wrap up victory in 84 minutes.

"For the first match on grass I played quite well," the 22-year-old said after his win. "I was coming from clay with a lot of sliding and you have to adjust. I think I did it alright."

Djokovic, who surprisingly lost to Philipp Kohlschreiber in the third round of the French Open, said he had now moved on from that defeat.

"My game was really bad that day. But you have to reset your psychology and move on," he added.
Contenders

World number nine Tsonga also progressed with a 7-5 6-2 win over Fabrice Santoro and will next meet experienced German Tommy Haas.

The big-serving Frenchman initially found it hard going against the 36-year-old veteran before he finally broke his compatriot at 6-5 after his opponent had saved three set points and he grabbed two more breaks in the second set to seal victory.

Philipp Petzschner was one of five Germans to advance on Tuesday, meanwhile, as he upset world number eight Fernando Verdasco 3-6 7-6 6-4.

Misha Zverev had little trouble beating Australian qualifier Joseph Sirianni 6-2 6-4 and Kohlschreiber dropped only six games in a 6-4 6-2 win over fellow German Bjorn Phau.

Nicolas Kiefer crushed Serb Viktor Troicki 6-2 6-1 and Andreas Beck defeated Belgian Christophe Rochus 6-3 6-1.
 

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Hewitt edged out by A-Rod
American edges battle of Queen's legends

Andy Roddick won the battle of the former winners against Lleyton Hewitt at Queen's, coming through two tie-breaks to reach the quarter-finals of the AEGON Championship.

Both the American and the Australian have won the West London title no fewer than four times each, but it was the second seed who came out best after a bomb scare delayed the start by around 10 minutes.

Neither player was able to break the other's serve in the entire match, but Roddick bossed the breakers 7-2 and 7-4 to earn a last eight clash with big-serving Croatian Ivo Karlovic.

"He's had just as much success as I've had... and knows how to use this surface to his advantage so well," said Roddick.

"I wasn't feeling comfortable but had a little more success in the tiebreaks."

Ninth seed Karlovic eased past Frenchman Nicolas Mahut 6-3 6-4, while third seed Gilles Simon joined his compatriot on his way out as he crashed 6-1 2-6 6-2 to Russia's Mikhail Youzhny.
 
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Murray battles past Spaniard
Top seed overcomes Garcia-Lopez to move into last eight

Andy Murray booked a quarter-final date with American Mardy Fish at the AEGON Championship with a 6-4 6-4 victory over Guillermo Garcia-Lopez.

The Spaniard gave the top seed a serious workout at Queen's but Murray was mostly looking confident on serve and it was Garcia-Lopez who regularly came under pressure with his delivery.

Murray levelled at 4-4 in the opening set before two unforced errors gave the Scot a chance to break for the first time, and although Garcia-Lopez fought back to deuce he hit a forehand long to give Murray the vital break.

With that confidence booster the Briton quickly served out for the set, a glorious crosscourt pass securing the lead.

The second set followed a similar pattern, with Murray unable to gain a significant advantage as the Spaniard continued to hit winners, including a sweet backhand down the line to hold serve in the opening game.

But his gamble to go for winners backfired in the fifth as Murray found himself with three break points without really having to force the issue, and the Scot capitalised to break for just the second time in the match.

Murray's serve continued to impress - he won 89 percent of first serve points - and Garcia-Lopez could make little impact as the world number three battled through in an hour and nine minutes.

"He started well and served well but once I got the breakthrough at the end of the first set I felt more comfortable and started to go for my shots," Murray said.

"I gave him one slight chance where I went down love-30 at 5-4 in the first set, but apart from that, I don't think any of my service games went to deuce. I didn't give him any break points. It was a solid match.

"I gave him a few too many chances to dictate the points at the start of the match but a lot of times that happens when you've never played somebody before.

"It kind of takes a little bit of time figure them out a bit, and once I managed to do that, I felt more comfortable.

"I've felt good the first two matches and I'll try to do the same again Mardy because he plays well on grass.

"I expect a lot of myself and put a lot of pressure on myself and I'll try to live up to those expectations in the next few weeks."

Fish wasted little time in overcoming Feliciano Lopez of Spain 6-1 6-4 to earn a clash with Murray.
 

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Ivanovic crashes out
Former world number one out in Eastbourne

Ana Ivanovic's preparations for Wimbledon have been hit by an early exit at the AEGON International at Eastbourne.

The former world number one started slowly and, despite a mid-match revival, ran out a 6-1 4-6 6-4 loser to seventh seed Nadia Petrova.

As a result of her first round loss, the 2007 Wimbledon semi-finalist will now have a full week to prepare for the Grand Slam at the All England Lawn Tennis Club outside of competition.

Top seed Elena Dementieva had no such trouble dispatching fellow Russian Maria Kirilenko 6-4 6-4, meanwhile.

Elsewhere in the women's main draw, Jie Zheng defeated Carla Suarez Navarro 6-2 6-2, while there were also wins for Virginie Razzano 7-6 (7-3) 6-2

over Alize Cornet and Samantha Stosur 6-2 6-1 against Sabine Lisicki.
 

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Murray spiced up for SW19
Scot has curry to celebrate Queen's success as he now prepares for Wimbledon


Andy Murray celebrated his historic Queen's title with Britain's most popular dish - a curry - as he now sets his sights on Wimbledon.

The British number one beat James Blake on Sunday to become the first home-grown winner of Queen's in more than 70 years.

While allowing himself an Indian meal to unwind, his preparations now begin in earnest to become Britain's first Wimbledon men's singles champion since 1936.

But the world number three is refusing to let his Queen's success go to his head and he intends to stay fully focused on the job in hand.

"It was a great week last week and hopefully I can take that into Wimbledon," said Murray on Monday at the launch of his new Fred Perry kit for the 2009 Championships.

"I went out for an Indian with all the guys I work with last night. We had a celebration - they had a few drinks on me, but no alcohol for me and I got to bed reasonably early."

He added: "Today I am not going to practise and then all the other days I will be practising at Wimbledon, starting tomorrow.

"I have got some go-karting planned at some point as a late birthday present, so I will try and fit that in at some point."
Planned regime

Murray had the option of some match action this week, but does not intend to break from his current planned regime.

"I will be spending most of my time in the gym or on court," he added.

"I think I have played enough matches in this last week - I played five days in a row so I have no plans to play any exhibitions.

"Maybe if things get a bit stale in practice it's good to do something different, but I don't plan to play any at the moment."

Murray acknowledges he has a chance of winning the British Grand Slam but he has to keep his focus.

"I am very excited to play at Wimbledon and I think I have a chance of doing well there," he said.

"I think I can win it, but I am going to focus on the very first match - there is no point in me thinking about winning it too much before the tournament has started.

"I could easily lose in the first round if I have an off day."

Expectation

While the Scot will be carrying the expectation of a nation on his shoulders, he maintains it should not have any impact on his title chances.

"A lot of people, not Tim (Henman) or Greg (Rusedski), but ex-players use it as an excuse as to why someone British has not won Wimbledon for so long," he said.

"But I personally don't think it makes any difference once the tournament starts.

"The build-up beforehand is a little bit more stressful than other tournaments, but once it starts, it's like all the other slams and you get great support in every one of your matches.

"Everyone wants you to win and that is a huge help. I put a lot of pressure on myself and I expect a lot from myself in the big tournaments and that helps me to play better."
 

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Schnyder doubles up in Hungary
Szavay keep home hopes alive in Budape

Top seed Patty Schnyder will face fourth-ranked Agnes Szavay in the final of the WTA GDF Suez Grand Prix in Budapest on Sunday.

Schnyder overcame Edina Gallovits of Romania 6-2 6-4 in the semi-finals, while Szavay defeated sixth-seeded Alona Bondarenko of Ukraine 6-1 6-2.

It was the second victory of the day for the former, who completed a 5-7 7-5 6-2 quarter-final win over Russia's Alisa Kleybanova after the match was suspended in the first set Friday because of rain.

But the Swiss showed little sign of fatigue in brushing Gallovits aside, never looking back after breaking her opponent in the very first game.

Hungarian Szavay raced out to a 5-0 lead in the first set, and broke Bondarenko again to start the second.

"I believe I played the way she doesn't like," said the local heroine. "That is why she made a lot of errors and could not play tennis the way she likes, a game of low shots."
 
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