Day 10 - At the Aussie Open 2009

G'day from the heatwave in Melbourne.

It's due to be in the 40s for the next two days but today, with the temperature soaring, the extreme heat policy finally came into effect. Play was suspended on the outside courts and the roof came on the Rod Laver Arena this afternoon for the first time.

It's all very well complaining about the heat affecting/stopping play but the TV news here is showing bush fires and train tracks buckling!

I did a bit of research in the Melbourne Age today on what certain ex-players are doing now. Do you remember Amanda Coetzer, the tiny South African who was world No.3 and was coached for a time by Nigel Sears? She has married a billionaire Hollywood film producer.

Gabriella Sabatini is still making her millions by pushing her perfume range, Yvgeny Kafelnikov has spent a bit of time on the celebrity poker scene and Ivan Lendl hit the pro golf tour briefly and unsuccessfully. Lendl has four daughters and two of them are pursuing a career in golf.

I still can't believe how well Jelena Dokic played throughout the women's event, to come here ranked 187 as a wild card and win through four three-setters was amazing and her narrow defeat in the quarter-finals to Safina was such a gutsy performance that she had the whole nation behind her. Her mad Dad Damir (from whom she is estranged) can't keep himself out of the papers and is being dubbed "Dial-a-quote Damir".

Dokic's run was just what Aussie tennis needed, a success story, when there's so much talk out in the media here about the state of the game. Does that sound familiar? It's the same for British Tennis during Wimbledon. Apparently several of the top ex-Aussie players will get together this weekend to discuss the way forward.

One thing is for sure, Tennis Australia is investing big time in facilities including the remodelling of Melbourne Park and the development of clay courts to ensure the best kids can learn to play on slow courts as well as fast. This is probably the only country in the world where most of the clubs still have grass courts!

I got burnt again watching the juniors, it's even hotter today than yesterday! Thankfully Laura Robson had a pretty straightforward win over a promising 15 year old Croatian, from 3-4 30-40 she reeled off 7 games before going through 6-4, 6-2.

I love her serve and her ability to up her game when she needs to. She is here with her coach Martyn Bok (he's Dutch) and her sister Emily who is an urban designer (no idea what that means but it sounds pretty cool!) and lives in Melbourne. Laura was born here but her parents moved to London when she was pretty young. Her mum Kathy was out here for the warm up tournaments but went back to London before the Open started. 

Heather Watson's match was a bit more complicated and lasted about two and a half hours in blistering heat against a Japanese player called Inoue who hit flat and hard from the baseline and liked to sneak in for the drive volley. Heather took the first set on a tie break, lost the 2nd 6-4, then gutsed out a 6-4 in the 3rd - much to the relief of the British supporters who were in desperate need of shade and a cuppa.

Heather is 16 years-old and based at Nick Bollettieri's in Florida. She's been out there for about 4 years I think and is here without a coach but with her mum who watched most of the match with a towel around her head :) 

It was a solid performance from Heather (seeded No.9) who is a good little baseline counterpuncher but plays just a bit too far behind the baseline for my liking. It limits her opportunities to dictate play and means she often gets caught out by short balls.

I'm in the player lounge right now with a tea and custard cream watching Kuznetsova vs Serena on TV. It's a set and 5-3 to Koozy but can she finish it? She has a history of snatching defeat from the jaws of victory so I'm glued to the box.

We got to know her pretty well when she trained at Sanchez Academy in Barcelona where Andy was based. She was there for about 8 years from aged 14 but is now back in Moscow and working with Olga Morozova. She said she just got fed up with doing the same drills day after day and wanted a change of scene and change of direction. She's lost a lot of weight and looks good. Sadly Serena's starting to look good too and its 5-5.

Oh dear, set all. The momentum is with the American but if Koozy wins all four women in the semis will be Russian. Unbelievable but maybe a bit dull for the tourney.

Later guys...

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