Zvonareva defeats ailing Ivanovic

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DOHA, Qatar -- Vera Zvonareva defeated an ailing Ana Ivanovic of Serbia 6-3, 6-7 (5), 6-4 Wednesday in round-robin play at the WTA's season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships.

The Russian won on her third match point when Ivanovic, who took a medical timeout in the first set, hit a forehand into the net.

The WTA said Ivanovic, the French Open champion, had a virus.

The ninth-ranked Zvonareva has won two White Group matches. Ivanovic has lost two. They have one more round-robin match.

The eight players are divided into two round-robin groups, with the two leaders of each going into an elimination stage.

Later Wednesday, Venus Williams was to meet Elena Dementieva and Serena Williams was to play Dinara Safina in Maroon Group play.

Davis Cup unlikely for injured Nadal

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MADRID, Spain -- Rafael Nadal has tendinitis in his right knee and could be in doubt for Spain's Davis Cup final against Argentina.

Medical tests Tuesday confirmed the tendinitis, and Spain team doctor Angel Ruiz-Cotorro said the top-ranked player would undergo treatment through Saturday.

Nadal is scheduled to have more tests to assess the injury. Spain plays Argentina in the final on indoor hard court at Mar del Plata from Nov. 21-23.

Spanish Davis Cup captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario will not pick Nadal if he is unfit, Nadal's uncle and coach Toni said Tuesday.

On Monday, Nadal pulled out of the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai citing fatigue after a season in which he's played in 111 matches.

Nadal, winner of a fourth straight French Open title and his first Wimbledon championship, withdrew from the Paris Masters on Friday with a knee problem after losing the first set of his quarter-final match against Nikolai Davydenko.

Nadal also won the Olympic gold medal in a year when he supplanted Roger Federer at No. 1. .Without Nadal, Spain would be regarded as an underdog to win its third Davis Cup trophy in eight years.

Spain beat the United States 4-1 in the semifinals, with Nadal and David Ferrer playing singles and Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco the doubles.

Zvonareva wins opener at season-ender

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DOHA, Qatar -- Vera Zvonareva defeated Russian compatriot Svetlana Kuznetsova 6-2, 6-3 on Tuesday at the WTA's season-ending Sony Ericsson Championships.

The round-robin match was the first played at the championships, which divides the world's best players into two groups of four before a playoff.

The ninth-ranked Zvonareva capitalized on error-strewn play by Kuznetsova, who often screamed in frustration after making mistakes.

Later Tuesday, top-ranked Jelena Jankovic of Serbia was scheduled to play compatriot Ana Ivanovic while American Venus Williams was to meet Russia's Dinara Safina.

Stars arrive in Qatar for WTA Champ.

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

DOHA, Qatar -- After a wide open year in women's tennis, with half a dozen players sharing the most coveted spoils, the best in the world are in Doha, Qatar for the WTA Tour's season-ending championship.

Once again, there is no clear favourite with two Serbs, two Americans and four Russians vying for the title.

The women's game lacks the drama of the men's side, where the rivalry between Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer reached a peak at the Wimbledon final with a Nadal victory that was hailed as one of the greatest matches in history.

But the Women's Tennis Association says broad parity and a tight race for No. 1 draw fans even after the abrupt retirement of top-ranked Justine Henin in May at the age of 25.

"In the beginning ... there was a spot open for everybody," top-ranked Jelena Jankovic of Serbia said Monday. "I'm really proud of myself that, you know, I could cope with all the pressure, and I could get all the points and secure my No. 1 ranking for the rest of the year."

Five players have held the top ranking this year, but only three of them will play in the US$4.55 million Sony Ericsson Championships that start with a round-robin format on Tuesday at the Khalifa International Tennis Complex. Henin is out of the rankings, and a shoulder injury has sidelined Australian Open champion Maria Sharapova.

That leaves Jankovic, who has won four titles but no major; third-ranked Serena Williams of the United States, who won the U.S. Open for her ninth major; and Ana Ivanovic of Serbia, who won her first major at the French Open, but slid to No. 4 after a string of losses linked to thigh and thumb injuries, as well as self-doubt.

"I think we're all a little bit tired and we have a long season behind us," said Ivanovic, who returned to form last month with a title win at Linz, Austria, her first since Roland Garros in June. "I feel my game is back on a level before my injury."

The other elite contenders are Wimbledon winner Venus Williams and the Russian contingent of second-ranked Dinara Safina, former U.S. Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova, Olympic gold medallist Elena Dementieva and world No. 9 Vera Zvonareva.

"I'm ready to get off the blocks fast," said Venus Williams, who welcomed WTA plans to reduce the number of compulsory tournaments for top players during a shorter 2009 season. Some events will be mandatory with possible suspensions in the event of non-compliance, but the goals are to generate commercial success and curb the burnout and injury that often come with a heavy playing schedule.

"It creates a stronger business model for not only the players but the tournaments," Venus Williams said. "I feel like the (WTA) road map is a great thing."

The championships were held in Madrid in 2006 and 2007, with Henin winning both times. Prior to Spain, they were mostly held in the United States. The transfer of the event to the Gulf partly reflects the lure of commercial backing from the energy-rich region, even if its tennis culture is not as developed as in the West.

Qatar will host the WTA season-ending tournament for three years, after which the championships will shift to Istanbul, Turkey.

The Doha tournament's White Group includes Jankovic and Ivanovic, along with Kuznetsova and Zvonareva. The American Williams sisters, as well as Safina and Dementieva, are in the Maroon Group. The top two players in each advance to elimination rounds. In addition, a doubles tournament will feature the world's top four teams.

On Tuesday, Kuznetsova plays Zvonareva, Jankovic faces Ivanovic, and Safina takes on Venus Williams.

Although the WTA championships lack the stature and fan interest of the four majors, Serena Williams said she was committed to a strong performance in Doha, with the winner collecting as much as $1.34 million.

"I need the money," joked Williams, who won the championship in 2001.

Rafael Nadal pulls out of Masters Cup

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

MADRID, Spain -- Rafael Nadal pulled out of the season-ending Masters Cup in Shanghai on Monday, citing fatigue after a long season and the need to prepare for the Davis Cup final.

The world's top-ranked player made the announcement on his website, describing his withdrawal as "one of the most difficult decisions in my career."

Nadal, who won two Grand Slam titles and the Olympic gold medal this year as he supplanted Roger Federer at No. 1, said he was physically run down.

"It has been a long and difficult year where I managed to obtain great results, both on a professional and on a personal level," he said. "I have mentioned on various occasions that the tennis calendar has been extremely hard with practically all weeks playing and where it forces players to compete week in, week out, making it impossible for a top-level player to be 100 per cent" for each event.

The Spaniard, winner of a fourth straight French Open title and first Wimbledon championship this year, withdrew from the Paris Masters last Friday with a knee problem after losing the first set of his quarter-final match against Nikolay Davydenko.

"On a personal level I had as one of my goals to become No. 1 during this year and competing at so many events might have harmed, especially at the end of the season, my physical condition, taking away the freshness needed to play at the top level of the game in these last events," Nadal said.

Nadal also said he hoped that his absence would buy him time for the Davis Cup final against host Argentina from Nov. 21-23.

"I want to recover and be ready for the important Davis Cup final with my country that will be played in Mar del Plata, Argentina. That is also another reason for not coming to Shanghai," Nadal added.

Nadal will be replaced in Wednesday's draw in Shanghai by Frenchman Gilles Simon..

The Spaniard's absence should boost the chances of Federer of winning his fifth Masters Cup, following his triumphs in 2003, 2004, 2006 and 2007.

Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga clinched the final singles berth at the Masters Cup by winning the Paris Masters title on Sunday.

The field also includes Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, Davydenko, Andy Roddick and Juan Martin Del Potro. Toronto's Daniel Nestor and Nenad Zimonjic of Serbia have qualified for the eight-team doubles event.

Tsonga tops Nalbandian at Paris Masters

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS PARIS -- Jo-Wilfried Tsonga beat defending champion David Nalbandian of Argentina 6-3, 4-6, 6-4 Sunday to win the Paris Masters and qualify for the season-ending Masters Cup. The 13th-seeded Tsonga clinched his second career title and becomes the first Frenchman since Sebastien Grosjean in 2001 to win the indoor tournament in Bercy. He clinched victory when Nalbandian hit the ball into the net after having missed three break points to pull back to 5-5. "I think everyone contributed to my victory today, this one's for you," Tsonga told the home crowd. "This ends a great season for me. I've played really well and the cherry on the cake is that I will go to Shanghai." Nalbandian was gracious in defeat. "He's a great player and has played brilliantly all week," Nalbandian said. "He deserves this title." Tsonga joins seven other players for the Masters Cup in Shanghai, starting Nov. 9, while Nalbandian missed his chance to qualify. The eighth-seeded Nalbandian had only four aces compared to 25 for Tsonga, the Australian Open runner-up. Tsonga broke Nalbandian's serve for a 2-1 lead in the deciding set, and saved a break point in the sixth game with an ace. Nalbandian's frustration showed in the eighth game when he slammed his racket to the ground. But he kept his composure to hold serve in the ninth game and then had Tsonga down 0-40. Tsonga saved all three break points, then hit an ace to set up match point and get the crowd on their feet. Tsonga's first serve flew into the net, but his second pinned Nalbandian to the back of the court before winning the resulting rally. Nalbandian couldn't match Tsonga's whirlwind start to the match, dropping serve with a double fault to trail 2-0 in the first set. The 23-year-old Frenchman was rarely troubled on serve, needing to save only one break point in the seventh game. Nalbandian served an ace to save a break point in the opening game of the second set. Both players then found their range, with four straight love service games. Tsonga's level started to dip. In the eighth game, he fell to 0-40 on serve before rallying with four aces to hold for 4-4. But he was 0-40 down again in the 10th game, and Nalbandian broke him to level the match.

Nalbandian to defend title in Paris final

THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

PARIS -- Defending champion David Nalbandian beat Nikolay Davydenko 6-1, 5-7, 6-4 Saturday to set up a Paris Masters final against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

Tsonga defeated 11th-seeded James Blake 6-4, 6-3 and could become the first Frenchman to win this event since Sebastien Grosjean in 2001.

"I have never played against him," Nalbandian said. "He's a good player, young and powerful. So it will be tough, but I have to keep believing in my game."

The wins also kept the eighth-seeded Nalbandian and 13th-seeded Tsonga on course for a place in the season-ending Masters Cup.

"I came onto the court like a tiger, I hit at everything that moved and that made the difference," Tsonga said. "I had to keep going forward, be more aggressive and start better than I did against (Andy) Roddick."

The winner of Sunday's final will go to Shanghai with Juan Martin del Potro, who clinched a spot because of Blake's loss.

"Winning you're in, losing you're on vacation," Blake said. "There's nothing I'm going to use as an excuse. I did as best I could."

Blake lost his serve three times and could not force a single break chance on Tsonga's serve. The 23-year-old Frenchman his 12 aces and won 25 of 28 points on his first serve and lost only five on his second.

"Jo played great. He deserved to win," Blake said. "I think he has a ton of potential and a ton of talent."

Nalbandian will be aiming for his 10th career title Sunday. Tsonga, the Australian Open runner-up, won his only title in September in Thailand.

Davydenko is a former Paris Masters champion. In the seventh game of the deciding set, the sixth-seeded Russian dropped serve and Nalbandian held for a 5-3 lead. Nalbandian won on his second match point when Davydenko's return sailed long.

"Maybe I didn't play perfect like yesterday or the day before," Nalbandian said. "In the second and third set he started serving better, and the rallies were very good. He hit a lot of lines."

Davydenko lost the first set in 28 minutes but picked up his game in the second set, improving his serve and pinning Nalbandian to the baseline with his forehand.

Nalbandian was under pressure on serve, down 6-5 down in the 12th game. He double-faulted and lost the second set when he hit the ball into the net after Davydenko had returned his weak second serve.

Top-ranked Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, and Andy Roddick qualified for the Masters Cup, which begins Nov. 9.

Federer pulled out before his quarter-final against Blake on Friday because of a sore back and Nadal retired during his quarter-final against Davydenko because of a knee injury.