Whole lotta Fed Cup was going on this weekend. Due to my generally mad schedule and amount of homework, I was only able to catch arguably the most interesting tie, Russia/Serbia.

Unfortunately, it really comes down to Ana, who was unable to win a set in either of her singles matches, or in the doubles. It’s too bad really. After being blown away in the first set by fellow RG champ The Kuzonator, she played a solid second, but ended up collapsing at the end… and pretty well did the exact same thing against Kleybs. How JJ managed to win both of her matches is beyond me.

The doubles was a shit show, naturally. Ana and JJ were all smiles… and then JJ nearly laughed herself off the court after she almost served into the WRONG SERVICE BOX. The good news was that Ana and JJ probably haven’t had that much fun on a tennis court in months. And that they were almost as cute as Muzz and L-Rob at Hopman Cup. The bad news is that Kuz knew what she was doing, and Serbia’s crap serving and volleying, and JJ’s still confusing and terribly timed backhand couldn’t stand the test.

Other winners are the USA over France, who without Momes, Gypsy, Mono… or really anyone, fell prey to Mel (who actually won a tennis match?) and friends. Defending champs Italy downed the Ukraine Bond sisters, and the Czechs dinged out a Sabine-less Germany.

And for a chance to play for World Group I, World Group II winners include Australia over Spain, Belgium over Poland, Estonia over Argentina, and the Czechs Slovaks over China.

Ana and Novak were both invited to be immortalized in the reconstruction of the TV Avala Tower that was destroyed in Belgrade during NATO bombings after they played an exhibition five years ago (five?! Wow…) to raise funds for the buildings reconstruction.

And of course, it features Ana’s man hands in all their glory. You could be blind and see those beasts from a mile away. You could also see Nole’s mad metrosexuality. Scarf? Sharp glasses? Done up hair? Might as well scream from the top of the tower once you’re done. Regardless, pretty sweet cause and dealio, and the hands of Serbian tennis players will now help keep it up for good.

Apparently Ana had a torn glute and practiced a whopping 4 hours in the 10 days before AO. Just when things were getting better. Or… less horrible. No, no excuses for the toss or the serve in Brisbane. But it sure did seem like Ana was getting the mental toughness back and she was really starting to whack the ball and believe in that forehand. And of course Melbourne was an entire mess. Damn, things just seem to keep getting worse before they get better.

Next stop, the finals!

OK, so life isn’t THAT good for Ana right now, but she IS playing better and sorting stuff out, and that’s all we can hope for right? Pretty comfortable win over a young, well moving American. I can dig it. She’ll face Dulkbag next, which should be a good test.

In some ways, it’s the same old Ana. In other ways, somehow, it’s not.

The ball toss? Still totally fucked. Yet somehow she made 68% of her first serves which were generally effective, and even hit four aces, three of which I remember being off total crap tosses too far in front (two went slicing out wide, and one peeled back in to catch the line down the middle). And just like last year (and this year) winning the second set after taking the first, or closing out a set or match after being up remains difficult. Up 4-0 and 5-2, Pavs clawed her way back to 5-5 and then broke to go up 6-5. Ana got it to a tiebreak, staved off a set point, and pulled the thing out of her ass… somehow.

Regardless, really brilliant playing from Ana. Going for huge forehands (including two fantastic return winners) and punishing short balls with free swings. Slicing and moonballing when necessary to get back into points, and playing some pretty great defence considering her movement, and even some brilliantly placed drop shots. To sum it up, she looked confident in both her shots, and most importantly, her shot making decisions, which meant that she wasn’t hesitating, and more than anything, usually making the right decision. This isn’t to say “old Ana” is back or something, of course the mental frailty is still there (Pavs started really hitting the ball and getting it in during her comeback, and Ana looked a bit lost and on the defensive.) but she DID hit 20 something winners, and errors are always going to be a part of her game. She likely doesn’t stand much of a chance against Justine, realistically, but she IS beating the players that she should be, and winning matches that are within her grasp, as well as gaining confidence. It’s tough to ask for too much at this stage. Keep it rollin’ girl.

I would sure as hell hope not.

Regardless, Ana kicked off her season tonight… with a win! 7-5, 1-6, 6-3. She needed some serious help from some seriously badly timed double faults from Dokic, but hey, a win is a win, right?

For Ana, its much needed. In fact, I figured out that the last match she won, I was at, in Toronto. Against Rybarikova. She then lost to Lucie after serving for the match at 5-4 in the second set, and it’s been all down hill from there. The wildness is still there, in particular “OHS NOES IM DOWN A BREAK I FAIL”, getting way too angry about line calls, and yes, the ball toss. In fact its way out of control. Either Sven is not doing enough… or not even Sven can help that poor girl. It was a sloppy match, but there was some big hitting from both players, and to be honest, Ana was doing a decent job at shot selection, and is clearly in good shape, tracking down balls and what have you, so there’s that. Really, the girl just needs a win, regardless. She’ll take on a no one next round, so that should give a pretty good indication of just exactly where her game is at. Bring on the craziness.

That’s a spicy meat-a-ball. And she goes by the name of Justine.

Just like I watched the unseeded Masha draw herself to get Nads and then dissect her in straight sets in Toronto, Nads hasn’t run into bad luck, she conjured it up all herself. She’s the first opponent Justine will be taking on in her return, and you guessed it, Nads drew the damned thing herself.

Another notable match-up is Ana and Jelena Dokic. Clearly Ana could have gotten a lot better… but she could have gotten a lot worse. Not like it matters, but the two have never met. Both had pretty crap years, in many ways, so I guess the good news is that one of them is going to be getting a first round win.

Here‘s the full draw.

So TOTALLY stealing FD Podcast’s idea on the “if players were stock, who would you buy, and who would you sell, going into 2010?”. I’m going to consider game improvement and achievement for next year, and not necessarily rankings, though one would assume that would go up as well. Going to do 3 for the men and the women. Feel free to call me a moron. Oh, and buy Justine and Kim. Duh.

Buy – Ana Ivanovic
What is there to say? If you’re Ana, the good news is that you can’t possibly have a worse year than you did last year, considering the often easy draws you got from an inflated ranking. The bad news is, you’re no longer in the top 20, and now have something to prove… which in turn is probably good news for us Ana fans. The French Open is her only slam, but she had years of success before that, it wasn’t a fluke. We all know she has the game to climb back to the top and become a contender, and considering this is her lowest ranking in about forever, buy.

Sell – Venus Williams
True, for any other player, it would have been a fantastic year. But interestingly, she (and Vika) only played 17 tournaments (one less than Serena, two less than Dina… 9 less than Caro…) and she had some pretty strange fails, like losing in the second round at AO after being up 5-2 in the third, and to K-Bond in Toronto. Sure, she made Wimbley final, has never been great on clay, and lost to eventual champ Kim at the USO… but she also turns 30 next June, and is pretty well no longer a slam contender other than Wimbledon. She’ll likely be around for a few more years, and still has great, top 10 stuff, but I’d look to sell as inconsistencies start to settle in.

Buy – Alize Cornet
For a player who had such an impressive 2008, its hard to believe that the Trumpet will be having a 2010 that’s anywhere close to 2009. After a fourth round loss at the AO to Dina, in an insane match that she could and should have won, she could only make it as far as the third round, once, in any other major tournament (being Miami, only taking 4 games off JZ). And she finished 2009 up ranked 50th. Jesus. She’s still young and has SOME promise, somewhere in her. Surely. If you’re in a gambling mood, buy, possibly even buy big.

Sell – Flavia Pennetta
Yeah, I know. I floves Flavs too. And I know, we all want a piece of that. But at the same time… a player who has her break out year at 27? She finished the year at 12th spot, and will be 28 in February. I’d love for her to keep rocking it, but something tells me she might not be hanging around the top 10 for that much longer, so it might be a good idea to sell. (Thanks to Steph from FD for the epic pic).

Buy – Sam Stosur
After having health problems and 2008, and being a mainstay contender in doubles, Superhero has decided she’s going to mainly focus on singles in 2010, and looking at her results in 2009, who can blame her? I got a chance to see her beat Kuz in Toronto, and then beat Gypsy 6-3, 6-1, in what was one of the biggest dominations I saw all year. Gypsy was powerless against Sam’s power, and when she would start to come in, Superhero would beast backhands cross-court, forehands down the line or cross-court. And then when it seemed like Gypsy might be on to something, Sam would just come to the net and start volleying the shit out of everything, and as I’ve noted many a time, all Gypsy could do was curse at the sky. Sure, it was just one match (two including the Kuz ownage). But at the same time, seeing that live, and the frustration it was causing Gypsy, the sheer power and variety in her game, whether to bash baseline or volley at the net… she finished the year at 13, and don’t be surprised if she breaks the top 10 this year.

Sell – Elena Dementieva
Perhaps I’m cheating a bit again, playing the “age card”… but yes, Lena had a solid year, winning the clusterfuck that was Toronto, and nearly making it to the Wimbledon final. But seeing her play this year just seemed endlessly frustrating, and most seem to think her chance at winning a slam is gone. Not that this is just about winning a slam, but its hard to see Lena’s game or ranking climbing much higher than it is now, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see the inconsistencies, frustrations, and earlier round loses come in more often over the next year or two.

Look who’s coming to town. Not just them, but Justine as well. Pretty well shit is going to be off the hook before we even hit AO, which I haven’t even the slightest clue as to what to expect for that. JD has also confirmed.

For the dudes, Bambi, Dick and Blah are all going down… under, among others.

In other scheduling news, Muzz and Fed are both out of the Shanghai Masters next week, so bring on Rafole final!

Everyone’s favourite fist-pumping, “Ajde” yelling, Freud reading Serb has pulled out of Beijing, and the rest of the year:

I guess having to withdraw from Beijing is an appropriate ending to a very disappointing season. This trip to Asia has been a big disappointment and I have struggled with my health pretty much since I arrived. I am sorry to my supporters who were hoping to see me play here in Beijing. It’s very disappointing for me as well, to come here, see the amazing facility they have and not have the energy to be able to step onto court. I can only look forward to coming back here next year.
It’s especially disappointing because I was hoping to be able to see some improvements before the season ended. I have gone through a lot of training and physical changes over the past few months, which have mostly remained private until now… My body is quite fragile at the moment, because I over-trained during the first part of the year. This was, I think, what caused me to have many small injuries this season.

Instead of being patient and accepting that my best form was almost impossible due to physical limitations, I was always over-thinking things, and I never dealt with it very well. The season was a continuation of going from one disappointment to another. If I had dealt better with these setbacks, I would have had a lot more success.

I also found it very tough to switch off and have a proper break over the past year or so, partly because of these physical problems. Actually, I don’t think I can remember the last time I had a proper holiday: I was always doing some kind of fitness or recovery work during my holidays, and that meant that I wasn’t able to switch off from tennis. I guess I just want it so badly.

As you may have noticed, I completely changed my serve after Wimbledon. This was because of my shoulder: if I continued serving and training the way I was, I would have almost certainly picked up a serious injury. My team and I are confident that I will be able to go back to my old service motion when I start practising again in November.

On the positive side, I am still No.11 in the world. I have no clue how I am ranked so highly, but to look on the bright side, I can’t play any worse than I did this year and I’m still in the top 20!

I’ve learnt so much this year. It’s a bit little bit like a few years ago, when I was ranked around No.14 for almost an entire year, and everyone was asking me, “when are you going to reach the top 10?” Within a year I was there, and within two years I was No.1. Sometimes you have to go through these experiences in order to become a better player.

Despite my disappointments there is not a single doubt in my mind that I will reach the top again and win Grand Slams.

One other positive to come out of all this is that I realised what a great team I have around me: they never doubted me, they supported me so well and did everything they could to assist me. I am very grateful to them all: my family, coaches and management.

I have appointed a new fitness coach, whom I will tell you more about later. Over the next month or so I can have a great break. I can rest without thinking about any future tournaments, then train and practise hard for the new season.

I have a lot to look forward to. Now is the time to rest, recharge, and come back stronger.

Love
Ana

P.S. I’d like to thank my loyal supporters for their encouragement this year. The journey is never easy!

Lots of people have been calling for something like this, its probably a good move. I’m not sure exactly how bad her health and injury problems have been this year, but the mental toughness has not been there, especially near the end here, and nothing bad can really come of taking this time off. The time off will at least get her strength back and give her some time to realize all she needs to focus on is next year, a fresh new slate. And of course, hopefully can get some work in (there’s been pics of her practicing with Sven, which is always good), and we’ll see how things go next year. Get well soon, Ana.