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Ana Ivanovic Pulls Out Of New Haven, Nadia Petrova Steps In
By Sean Rudolph
© Tony Chang/Chang Photography
(August 20, 2010) Ana Ivanovic's injured left ankle forced her to hobble out of the Cincinnati semifinals last Saturday and knocked her out of New Haven today. The 39th-ranked Ivanovic has withdrawn from next week's Pilot Pen Tennis on the campus of Yale due to the injury, but believes she will recover in time for the US Open, which starts on August 30th. She will be replaced by World No. 21 Nadia Petrova in the New Haven draw.
"It's a real shame. Right now I am quite down, but I believe I will be ready for the US
Open," Ivanovic said. "I had a similar injury two years ago in Doha and I recovered within a week. Now I just have to be patient and wait for the pain to go away. I am confident it will be fine for New York."
Petrova, who will be making her fifth trip to the Pilot Pen, has reached the quarterfinals of the
Australian and French Opens this year. She has nine career singles titles and 19 career doubles titles, and reached the semifinals at the French Open in 2003 and 2005. She will rise into the top 20 of the world rankings next week.
Ivanovic, who said she "had almost non-stop icing (my ankle) for two days, to prevent swelling," announced at a New Haven press conference last night she hoped to play, but that changed following a practice session. Ivanovic practiced on the site on Thursday and said when she tried to practice today, she immediately realized her ankle is not yet strong enough for tournament play.
"I'm really disappointed to be withdrawing," said Ivanovic. "I'd been looking forward to playing in New Haven ever since I had my wild card request accepted. I've really enjoyed being here the past few days: it's a beautiful city, and feels very European to me. Unfortunately my ankle isn't going to be ready in time for the tournament. I practiced for the first time on Thursday, but today when I went on court, I felt that it was getting worse and I was feeling a lot of pain. There is just no way I will be ready for the tournament."
The former World No. 1 said she believes her Cincinnati revival is the start of a successful run.
“I know I have a game that can get me to the top," Ivanovic told the media in a New Haven press conference Thursday night. "There’s still a lot more hard work to be done. But I do feel I’m on the right way."
An MRI conducted on Ivanovic's injured left ankle over the weekend showed she suffered strained ankle ligaments rather than a bone fracture. The 22-year-old Serbian said she had been treating her ankle since retiring from her semifinal against Kim Clijsters while trailing 1-2 at the Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open on Saturday.
On court, Ivanovic's willingness to step forward, swing big, drive the ball down the line, pound short balls and follow them to net is a sign the 2008 French Open champion is regaining her confidence.
In May, Ivanovic swept three top 20 players in succession — 10th-ranked Victoria Azarenka, sixth-ranked Elena Dementieva and 18th-ranked Nadia Petrova — to reach the Rome semifinals in a successful spurt she hoped would jump-start a comeback run. But she slumped to a 3-6 record, making several tearful exits before her Cincinnati surge.
“It’s very hard because you’ve tasted the success and you’ve tasted winning a Grand Slam,” said Ivanovic. "Then all of the sudden, you’re losing to the girls that you’ve been beating in two sets."
Ivanovic entered Cincinnati ranked No. 62, but fought back from a set and a break down to beat Stanford champion Victoria Azarenka in the opening round en route to her first semifinal since Rome, raising her ranking to No. 39.
The woman who once ruled the world is now facing more immediate challenges: regaining full strength in her ankle and improving on abysmal US Open results the past two years. Ivanovic entered the 2008 US Open as the World No. 1 and suffered a shocking loss to 188th-ranked qualifier Julie Coin. Last year, she lost in the opening round to No. 52 Kateryna Bondarenko.
The US Open has been her least successful major as the former Australian Open finalist has posted a 7-6 career record in New York with her best result coming in a round of 16 appearance in 2007. Her struggles the past 18 months have helped Ivanovic gain a sense of perspective on her place in the game and the game's place in her life.
"You realize there's more to life than just tennis," Ivanovic said. "It's important to find balance."
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