Wimbledon Capsules: Kvitova beats Sharapova at Wimbledon for first major

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — One might reasonably have expected Petra Kvitova, not Maria Sharapova, to be betrayed by nerves in the Wimbledon final.

This was, after all, Kvitova's first Grand Slam championship match, while Sharapova already owned three major titles, including one from the All England Club. So Kvitova decided to pretend she was heading out on Centre Court to play in the fourth round.

That mindset worked. So, too, did nearly everything Kvitova tried once play began, particularly her big, flat left-handed groundstrokes that pushed Sharapova back on her heels. In a surprisingly lopsided final, Kvitova beat the higher-seeded, yet shakier, Sharapova 6-3, 6-4 Saturday to win Wimbledon for her first Grand Slam trophy.

"I was surprised how I was feeling on the court," Kvitova said, "because I was focused only on the point and on the game and not on the final."

If there were those who wondered how the eighth-seeded Kvitova would handle the setting and the pressure, her coach did not.

Indeed, David Kotyza had an inkling his new pupil possessed the right stuff to win titles shortly after they began working together about 2½ years ago. That's because he was wowed by the several pages of handwritten answers Kvitova supplied for a questionnaire he gave her back then — and has kept to this day.

"I was really surprised about how she thinks about tennis, how clever she is. She told me her advantages, disadvantages, what she has to improve," Kotyza said, then pointed a finger to his temple and added: "Her brain is a big advantage for this game."

When she was a kid growing up in Fulnek, Czech Republic — population: 6,000 — and practicing an hour or so after school each day, Kvitova didn't count on becoming a professional tennis player. She simply wasn't that good, yet. Clearly, she's a quick study.

Before Wimbledon in 2010, Kvitova's career record on grass was 0-4. She is 16-2 on the slick surface since, including a run to the semifinals here last year before losing to Serena Williams.

At 21, Kvitova is the youngest Wimbledon champion since — you guessed it — Sharapova was 17 in 2004. Kvitova is also the first Czech to win the tournament since Jana Novotna in 1998.

Plus, Kvitova is only the third left-handed woman to win the grass-court Grand Slam tournament. The last was Martina Navratilova, who won her ninth Wimbledon title in 1990, a few months after Kvitova was born.

"I'm thrilled for her. She played brave tennis, and she deserved to win. She was by far the better player," said Navratilova, who was born in Czechoslovakia and sat near Novotna in the Royal Box on Saturday. "I don't think this is the only time she'll win here. It's very exciting. A new star."

That last phrase was being uttered by many people around the grounds after Kvitova managed to make Sharapova look rather ordinary.

Consider: Until Saturday, Sharapova had won all 12 sets she played over the last two weeks. But, as Sharapova's coach Thomas Hogstedt summed up afterward: "One played well. The other didn't play well. Maria didn't play as good as she can."

That was, at least in part, Kvitova's doing.

She compiled 19 winners, most by zipping her heavy forehands and backhands from the baseline, where her 6-foot frame and long arms helped her get to seemingly out-of-reach balls.

"She created offensive opportunities from tough positions on the court," Sharapova said. "Sometimes it's just too good."

Kvitova also broke Sharapova five times, anticipating where serves were headed.

It helped that Sharapova double-faulted six times, although at least those were fewer than the 13 the Russian hit in the semifinals.

"She performed incredible. Sometimes, when you don't know what to expect and you don't know how you're going to feel, sometimes you play your best, because you have that feeling of nothing to lose," said the fifth-seeded Sharapova, who was playing in a major final for the first time since right shoulder surgery in October 2008. "She went for it, absolutely."

What really was odd was seeing the experienced and normally gritty Sharapova bothered by distractions such as the swarms of tiny greenflies that showed up Saturday or the occasional clap or yell that came from the stands during points.

Even more stunning was the way Sharapova crumpled at key moments. One example: She double-faulted twice in a row to lose serve and fall behind 4-2 in the first set. Sharapova turned her back to the court and gave herself a little lecture, then smacked herself on her left palm with her racket.

Kvitova — now 4-1 in tournament finals this year — broke again to begin the second set, capping that game with a running forehand that caught the back edge of the baseline. The women exchanged four consecutive breaks in the middle of that set, before Kvitova — not Sharapova — gathered herself.

Ahead 4-3, but trailing 15-30 while serving, Kvitova hit three straight service winners to get to 5-3.

"She served quite hard. Her second serve was pretty big as well. She was going for it, for the second serve," Sharapova said. "I felt like I could have reacted a little bit better."

Credit Kvitova also for being at her steadiest in the most resolve-testing moments. She served out both sets at love, including with a 105 mph ace on match point.

What was running through her head right then?

"I have to do it now," she would say later.

After that last point — one last nerve-free point — Kvitova raised both arms, then dropped to her knees. A raucous celebration ensued in her guest box, including some overzealous chest-bumping that left one man knocked off his feet. Kvitova's allotted seats were completely filled — with her coach, parents, two brothers and Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour, among others — while Sharapova's section had only her agent, coach, hitting partner and fiance, New Jersey Nets guard Sasha Vujacic.

"When you lose in the final, you feel like the biggest loser in a way, but Maria is on the right track. She's working hard," Vujacic said. "She needed a lot of time to come back, and I think if she stays on the same road, there are many good things ahead of us."

Now there will be similar expectations of Kvitova.

Kotyza, her coach, said Kvitova's best quality probably is that "she's just an ordinary girl. She's standing with both feet on the ground. And I think it's very, very important for ... these matches. Because she's 'OK, just hit the ball, and we will see.'"

Asked after Saturday's victory when she first realized she might one day win a Grand Slam title, Kvitova smiled, tucked some strands of hair behind her ear and replied: "Probably yesterday."

Shaky serve sinks Sharapova in Wimbledon final

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Maria Sharapova's serve let her down again, and this time there wasn't much she could do about it.

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — From 1983 to 2003, the world’s top two players never met each other in the Wimbledon men’s final.

It’s about to happen for the seventh time in eight years — with a couple of twists.

Thanks mainly to a couple of guys named Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, No. 1 vs. No. 2 Grand Slam finals became something of a regular occurrence in recent years, at the All England Club and elsewhere. On Sunday, No. 1 Nadal will be involved in yet another 1-2 Wimbledon championship matchup, only it’ll be against No. 2 Novak Djokovic — and they’ll switch spots in the ATP rankings a day later.

As of Monday, Djokovic will move up to No. 1, and Nadal will slide down to No. 2, regardless of Sunday’s outcome. Whichever man wins, it will be the sixth major title in a row that’s gone to Nadal (French Open, Wimbledon and U.S. Open in 2010, French Open in 2011) or Djokovic (2010 Australian Open).

"One guy played unbelievable the first half of the year, so he’s the new No. 1," Nadal said. "We just can congratulate him, because what he did this first part of the season is something really impressive, really fantastic."

That’s definitely the case. Djokovic is 47-1 in 2011, including a 4-0 record against Nadal, beating him in two hard-court finals and two clay-court finals.

"The four times I won against him this year can probably help me in some ways mentally prior to this match," said Djokovic, who is 11-16 against Nadal overall, including 0-5 in Grand Slam tournaments.

The 24-year-old Serb won the first seven tournaments he entered this season, before his 43-match winning streak, dating to the Davis Cup final in December, ended with a loss to Federer in the French Open semifinals.

"He’s the best player in the world (at) the moment," Jo-Wilfried Tsonga said after losing to Djokovic in Friday’s semifinals.

That victory moved Djokovic into his first final at Wimbledon, and fifth at a Grand Slam tournament. He’s 2-2 so far, winning the Australian Open twice, and losing in two U.S. Open finals — to Federer in 2007 and to Nadal last year.

This one carries the most significance to Djokovic, though.

"First time I watched tennis or anything related to tennis was Wimbledon ... when I was 4, 5. I remember those days," he said. "I remember always Wimbledon being ‘the one."’

Nadal, meanwhile, is seeking his third Wimbledon title and 11th Grand Slam trophy overall. A month past his 25th birthday, Nadal would be the second-youngest man to get to 11, barely behind Bjorn Borg.

And Nadal already would be tied for fourth-most Grand Slam titles in history, trailing only Federer (16), Pete Sampras (14) and Roy Emerson (12).

Nadal refuses to talk about pursuing Federer’s record.

"I think about the number ‘10.’ That’s what I have at home. That’s what I’m able to see when I go back home, in my bedroom," Nadal said. "I don’t have 11, I don’t have 12, I don’t have 15, or 16; 16 is very far. I believe the number is not going stop there. Roger will have more chances to win more."

Others are more willing to assess Nadal’s chances of surpassing Federer.

Sampras, for one, said this week he wouldn’t be surprised to see Nadal do it.

Nadal has won 20 consecutive matches at Wimbledon and is 32-2 at the grass-court Grand Slam since the start of the 2006 tournament, reaching five finals in a row.

He lost to Federer in the 2006 and 2007 finals, and beat him for the 2008 title — those were three of their seven 1-vs.-2 major championship matches — then missed Wimbledon in 2009 because of tendinitis in his knees, before beating Tomas Berdych in last year’s final.

John McEnroe was ranked No. 1 when he lost to No. 2 Jimmy Connors in the 1982 Wimbledon final. But there wasn’t another 1-2 title match at the All England Club until 2004, when No. 1 Federer beat No. 2 Andy Roddick. They repeated that matchup a year later, and then Federer and Nadal began their string of finals.

Now Nadal and Djokovic meet in what might only wind up being the first top-two Grand Slam final between them.

No matter what Monday’s rankings will say, McEnroe knows which of those he thinks is No. 1 for now: Nadal.

"The guy’s one of the greats, no doubt about it," McEnroe said, "and you can make an argument for him being the greatest."

-- Howard Fendrich

Serbia celebrates national hero Djokovic at No. 1

BELGRADE, Serbia (AP) — What’s your goal in tennis?

"To be a champion!" snaps a 7-year-old boy holding an oversize tennis racket with a baseball hat turned backward.

The lively kid with bushy hair from an old video aired on state TV is Novak Djokovic, who has reached his first Wimbledon final. Even if he loses Sunday’s final against defending champion Rafael Nadal, Djokovic will fulfill his lifelong dream by reaching the No. 1 ranking on Monday.

Serbia celebrated after Djokovic defeated France’s Jo-Wilfried Tsonga 7-6 (4), 6-2, 6-7 (9), 6-3 on Friday to secure the No. 1 spot and a place in the final.

"This is one of those moments where you can’t describe it with words," Djokovic said after he dropped to his knees to kiss the Wimbledon grass. "You remember all your career, all your childhood, everything you worked for that comes true now."

The 24-year-old Djokovic has traveled a hard and lengthy road from his Balkan childhood on Mt. Kopaonik in southern Serbia — where his parents once owned a pizza parlor — to be officially the best tennis player in the world.

"Everything came (down) to hard work and lots of sacrifice," said Niki Pilic, a former Croatian tennis star and Djokovic’s former trainer.

"Of course, there is undeniable talent, brains, psyche, the real state of mind, iron will, great discipline, but also the ability not to fly too early," Pilic said. "Simply, Novak has all of that. If he missed even one of those elements, he would feel like carrying lead on his feet."

Djokovic has attributed some of his toughness to growing up in war-ravaged Serbia.

Along with Ana Ivanovic and Jelena Jankovic — both former No. 1-ranked women — he has managed to overcame Balkan wars in the 1990s and a limited tennis infrastructure to rank among the world’s best.

As children growing up in Belgrade, Djokovic and Ivanovic trained at a club that used an empty swimming pool as a makeshift tennis court. The two had to cut short their practice sessions and run into bomb shelters when the Serbian capital was targeted by NATO jets during the 1999 war over Kosovo.

Djokovic often says his patriotism drives him. Partly for that, he is ranked the most popular personality in Serbia who — according to opinion polls — could easily win the country’s presidential elections if he decided to run.

Djokovic led Serbia to its first Davis Cup title in December. He has described the victory as the highest point of his career. Since that win, he’s gone 49-1 and defeated Rafael Nadal in four finals.

"I’ll never forget the day that 4-year-old boy came to my tennis camp," said Jelena Gencic, Djokovic’s first coach. "I asked him what does he want to become when he grows up. Without hesitation, he said: ‘The No. 1 racket (player) in the world."’

When Djokovic won the match against Tsonga, the people in the Serbian capital were shooting in the air and dancing on the streets.

"The Serbs for a moment forgot their worries, shouting for Djokovic in his historic climb to the number one place in the world," state Tanjug news agency said.

More celebrations are planned for Sunday after the Wimbledon final — if two-time Australian Open champion Djokovic wins.

Not that many Serbs have doubts about the result.

Nevenka Jovanovic, a Belgrade university student, spoke for many Serbs: "Tomorrow will be another historic day."

-- Dusan Stojanovic

Commentary: Murray’s curse is playing in a great era

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — "Andy! Let’s win one, come on!" came a man’s booming and pleading voice from high in the Centre Court crowd, with a London accent as thick as dark ale. Sorry, mate, not this year. Maybe, dare it be said, not ever.

Andy Murray’s curse is being a tennis player in the era of Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer and, increasingly now, Novak Djokovic.

Two of those three are among the greatest players ever. And Djokovic can’t be too bad, because on Monday he will be ranked ahead of them as the new No. 1.

And Murray? Well, Britain’s best player in 70-plus years is undeniably very good, better at this Wimbledon than he has ever been.

In a less exceptional period of men’s tennis, for instance in that briefest of windows between Pete Sampras’ last Wimbledon title in 2000 and Federer’s first in 2003, perhaps Murray would have earned his first major by now.

Instead, Murray risks becoming to tennis what Raymond Poulidor was to the Tour de France. "The eternal second," the French called their beloved bear-like rider who finished runner-up three times and third four times in the 1960s and ‘70s.

Like Murray, Poulidor’s career was cursed by spanning an era of greatness in cycling, trapping him between Jacques Anquetil and Eddy Merckx, who both won the Tour five times.

At 24, Murray is not giving up hope. Minutes after his third consecutive Wimbledon semifinal loss 5-7, 6-2, 6-2, 6-4 on Friday to Nadal, Murray was already looking ahead.

"It’s a very tough era, I think, in tennis. Tennis right at the top of the game is exceptional," he said. "So not only to get level with those guys, but to push past them, you need to work harder than them. That’s what I need to try to do."

In so many ways, Murray is so close.

"I need to work 2, 3 percent harder," he said, giving a neat numeric gauge of just how close to Nadal, Federer and Djokovic he thinks he is.

Murray’s service returns compete with Djokovic’s as the best in the game right now. Repeatedly, he rocked Nadal back on his heels with returns fired at his feet.

At Wimbledon, Murray has learned to cope with the pressure of British expectation exceptionally well. It can’t be easy to bear the hopes of a nation that has never seen a homegrown men’s champion in color, and has only black and white newsreels of Fred Perry, in 1936, to prove to young Britons that, yes, a British man can, in fact, win on these green lawns that, every year since, have been invaded by champions from foreign shores.

Murray, sometimes sour, rarely if ever effusive, is hard to warm to. But, with time, the Wimbledon crowds have taken him into their hearts. You should have heard Centre Court roar, seen the men in blazers and ties leap to their feet and the women in smart frocks wave their Union Jack flags on small sticks, when Nadal limply fired the ball into the net to give Murray the first set.

But Murray still can’t get over the hump and into the final.

Murray’s mistake this time was over-hitting an easy forehand that would have given him two break points when leading 2-1 in the second set.

Players made of sterner stuff, such as Nadal, would have brushed off the disappointment and carried on. Not Murray. He lost the next seven games.

"It’s tough," he said later. "But, you know, I’m giving it my best shot each time."

Unfortunately for Murray, his best may never be enough.

John Leicester is an international sports columnist for The Associated Press. Write to him at jleicester@ap.org.

Bryans win 11th Grand Slam, second Wimbledon title

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — American twins Bob and Mike Bryan won a record-tying 11th Grand Slam men’s doubles title Saturday, defeating Robert Lindstedt of Sweden and Horia Tecau of Romania 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (2) in the Wimbledon final.

The Bryan brothers won at Wimbledon for the second time and matched Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge’s Open era record of 11 major titles.

"To equal the Woodies — a team that we idolized, the greatest team in our mind — is unbelievable," Mike Bryan said. "To get their title record and get the Grand Slam record, I mean, I’m trying to figure out what’s left. We weren’t even thinking about 11 until Mark Woodforde came up and said, ‘Congrats on getting that 11th."’

In the women’s final, Katarina Srebotnik of the Czech Republic and Kveta Peschke of Slovenia won their first Grand Slam title by defeating Samantha Stosur of Australia and Sabine Lisicki of Germany 6-3, 6-1.

The No. 1-ranked Bryans won their 62nd career doubles title in 2010 in Los Angeles to surpass the record of 61 held by Woodforde and Woodbridge. The title on Saturday was the Bryans’ 73rd.

"They’re always supportive," Mike Bryan said of the Australian pair. "They’re not jealous about their records. You know, they have their place in history. They’re in the Hall of Fame. They won six Wimbledons. They have a case, and they’re the best team, you know. We have a case now, obviously."

The Bryans won their first Wimbledon title in 2006 to complete a full set of the four Grand Slam titles. They have won the Australian Open five times, the U.S. Open three times and lifted the French Open trophy in 2003.

They have lost three other Wimbledon finals and twice went to five sets in order to reach the final this year. But it was smooth sailing on Saturday in a dominant serving display against Tecau and Lindstedt, who also lost in last year’s final.

Tecau lost his serve early in each of the first two sets and the Bryan twins didn’t face a single break point in the match. Tecau and Lindstedt held on to take the third set into a tiebreaker but the Americans won it easily.

"This one felt really good," Mike Bryan said. "We weren’t really threatened on our serve. So this one was definitely pretty smooth."

While the men’s final featured only two breaks of serve, the women’s final that followed it on Centre Court had eight.

Lisicki, who lost to Maria Sharapova in the singles semifinals, and Stosur completed a 6-3, 4-6, 8-6 semifinal win over Marina Erakovic of New Zealand and Tamarine Tanasugarn of Thailand. That match was suspended by darkness at 5-5 in the third set Friday.

The unseeded Lisicki and Stosur started well in the final but after taking a 3-1 lead in the first set, they lost eight straight games to allow the second-seeded Srebotnik and Peschke to take control.

At 3-0 down in the second set, Lisicki and Stosur recovered one of the breaks but were immediately broken again.

With the win, Srebotnik and Peschke also took over the No. 1 ranking in doubles.

The 35-year-old Peschke became the first Czech player to win the Wimbledon women’s doubles title since Jana Novotna in 1998. Earlier Saturday, Petra Kvitova became the first Czech women’s singles champion since Novotna in the same year.

"Terrific feeling," Peschke said. "I mean, I’m playing for so many years, so this is, we say, the cherry on the cake. I’m very proud of us. We played magnificent through the whole tournament and through the whole year. We are happy to have the trophy in our hands."

-- Caroline Cheese

Wimbledon readies for 2012 Olympic makeover

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — The grass still will be green when the Olympics come to Wimbledon in 2012 and that is just about all that will look the same.

The familiar dark green surroundings of Centre Court will be replaced by one of the Olympic theme colors; players will be decked out in their national colors instead of the traditional all-white of Wimbledon; there will be no queue snaking around the nearby park.

"We’ve got to make sure we stamp our mark on it," said Debbie Jevans, London 2012 director of sport and venues, "so when people come to Wimbledon, they know they’re part of an Olympic competition, and they don’t feel like they’re coming back to Wimbledon."

At the same time, Jevans recognized that the appeal of visiting Wimbledon, "the greatest tennis venue in the world," was at least part of the reason why tennis was one of the events that sold out its allocation in the first round of sales.

"Clearly, people want to come to Wimbledon but also they want to see the great players and they want to experience the Olympics so those three together make it a pretty compelling package," she said.

Organizers will have just 19 days between the end of the 2012 Championships and the start of the Olympic competition on July 28 to complete the makeover.

Restoring the green of the grass-courts will not prove a problem, according to the All England Club’s head groundsman Eddie Seaward, one of a handful of personnel from the Grand Slam tournament who also will work at the Olympic event.

He already knew from experience that it was possible after readying the courts for the filming of the Wimbledon movie shortly after the 2003 Championships. Just in case there was any doubt, he carried out another trial run for the benefit of Olympics organizers after last year’s tournament.

Immediately after the 2012 Grand Slam tournament ends, Seaward’s team will plant pre-germinated seeds in any bare or brown patches on the courts, particularly around the baseline.

At the 2008 Beijing Games, the Olympic rings were painted behind the baseline and Seaward said he wouldn’t have any practical objection to that on Centre Court.

"Nobody’s said anything, but it would be possible," he said.

Seaward’s task will be made slightly easier because fewer courts are needed for the Olympic event, which will have a capacity of 26,000, compared to 40,000 during the Grand Slam tournament. Centre Court and Court 1 will be used, but the recently redeveloped No. 3 is among those being earmarked as a practice court.

The competition itself features 64-player men’s and women’s singles tournaments. Medals also will be handed out for men’s and women’s doubles and, for the first time since tennis returned to the Olympic program in 1988, mixed doubles.

Spain’s Rafael Nadal won the gold medal in men’s singles in Beijing four years ago. Roger Federer teamed with Stanislas Wawrinka to win the men’s doubles for Switzerland.

Among the women, Elena Dementieva of Russia, who has retired, won the singles and sisters Venus and Serena Williams captured the doubles.

Instead of the usual mix of international royalty, British celebrities, and All England Club members, seats in the Royal Box on Centre Court will be reserved for members of the "Olympic family."

The theme color of the venue has not been decided, but will be dark to ensure players can pick out the ball. The International Olympic Committee operates a "clean venue" policy so there will be no advertising around the courts, but the areas outside the courts likely will have a different look and feel.

However, Jevans said strawberries and cream, the traditional snack of the Championships, could be available.

The 2011 Wimbledon tournament is acting as a test event for the Olympics. More than 100 staff from the organizing team have been to the tournament during the two weeks.

London 2012 chief executive Paul Deighton, and Carlos Nuzman, the president of the 2016 Rio Olympics, have been guests in the Royal Box.

The final wrinkles will be ironed out at another event behind closed doors at the end of September, when technology such as the scoring equipment will be tested.

-- Carolina Cheese

Luke Saville wins boys’ title at Wimbledon

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) — Luke Saville of Australia won the boys’ title at Wimbledon on Saturday, coming from a set and a break down to beat Liam Broady of Britain 2-6, 6-4, 6-2.

Saville was trailing 4-3 in the second set before he won 11 straight points to lead 5-4, 40-0. Broady saved two set points but netted a forehand on the third.

Saville lost to Jiri Vesely of the Czech Republic in the Australian Open junior final this year. He is the first Australian boy to win the Wimbledon junior title since Todd Reid in 2002.

In a match between 17-year-old players, Broady was backed by a near-capacity crowd on Court 1, but provided little challenge in the third set.

"It just slipped away," Broady said. "(The crowd support) was probably one of the best things today; my tennis probably wasn’t."

He also came up short on another front Saturday. He and Filip Horansky of Slovakia lost to Morgan and Pavic in the doubles semifinals.

Saville had his own small contingent of fans, including Australian players Mark Woodforde and Jason Stoltenberg.

"It was a little bit one-sided out there but I had my spectators," Saville said. "I’m going to probably shout (buy) them dinner tonight in appreciation."

Australia could make a sweep of the Wimbledon junior singles titles. Ashleigh Barty will play third-seeded Irina Khromacheva of Russia in the girls’ final Sunday.

Britain is still without a boys’ champion since Stanley Matthews, the son of the England soccer great by the same name, won in 1962.

There will, however, be a home winner in the boys’ doubles. Oliver Golding of Britain and Vesely will play George Morgan of Britain and Mate Pavic of Croatia in the final Sunday.