Azarenka routs Sharapova in Australian Open final

Victoria Azarenka of Belarus absolutely routed Maria Sharapova of Russia Saturday night to not only claim the 2012 Australian Open title, but also to take over the World No. 1 ranking.

The match was over in just 1 hour 22 minutes as Azarenka handily took down three-time Grand Slam winner Sharapova 6-3, 6-0, winning 12 of the last 13 games after dropping her first service game and falling behind 2-0.

It was Azarenka’s first Grand Slam final appearance, winning 11 straight matches to get there. Her previous best performance at a major was a semifinal loss to Petra Kvitova at Wimbledon last year.

Australian Open Final set – Azarenka vs. Sharapova

Victoria Azarenka and Maria Sharapova are set for a final battle with nothing more on the line than the Australian Open Title, and the World No. 1 ranking.

In one semifinal, the No. 4 seed, Sharapova, showing a remarkable comeback after shoulder surgery, defeated the No. 2 seed, Petra Kvitova in a close contest, 6-2, 3-6, 6-4. No one has ever come back this far after the type of surgery she has had.

In the other semifinal, No. 3 seed, Azarenka, downed No. 11 seed Kim Clijsters in an equally close match, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

Azarenka defeats Clijsters to gain first major final

No. 3 seed, Victoria Azarenka of Belarus, won a hard-fought semifinal match over No. 11 seed, Kim Clijsters of Belgium, 6-4, 1-6, 6-3, to advance to her first ever major final at the 2012 Australian Open.

Azarenka won the first set 6-4, then fell apart to lose the 2nd set 1-6. Clijsters was broken early in the 3rd set, but surged back, saving many game points to break back. Azarenka, however, stayed strong, breaking three times in the third set to secure victory in only her second appearance in the semifinal of a major.

Clijsters knocks Wozniacki from the top ranking

In a close match, Kim Clijsters of Belgium has effectively knocked Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark from her perch as World No. 1. In the Quarterfinals of the Australian Open, Clijsters defeated Wozniacki in straight sets, 6-3, 7-6(7-4).

Wozniacki will now be usurped by either Victoria Azarenka, Petra Kvitova, or Maria Sharapova, all three of whom are still in contention.

Clijsters dominated from the baseline for much of the match, and showed no visible effects from the twisted ankle she suffered against Na Li in the fourth round.

Azarenka wins WTA Apia International

No. 3 ranked, Victoria Azarenka of Belarus defeated No. 5 ranked Na Li of China in the final of the WTA Apia International played in Sydney, Australia on Friday.

Azarenka overcame a second-set lapse in the Australian warm-up tournament for a 6-2, 1-6, 6-3 win over last year’s champion Li.

After staying on serve until 4-3 in the deciding set, Azarenka broke Li for a chance to serve out the match, saving two break points in the process.

Wozniacki upset by Radwanska, could lose No. 1 ranking

World No. 1, Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark, was upset on Wednesday in a quarterfinal match at the 2012 WTA Apia International Sydney tournament by No. 7 seed, Agnieszka Radwanska of Poland.

Wozniacki had a chance to serve out the match at 5-4 in the second set, but was broken, then lost four straight games leading to a 3-6, 7-5, 6-2 defeat. In that final set, the 21-year-old Dane underwent multiple treatments on her left wrist.

Goerges defeats Wozniacki in 2nd meeting in a row

Julia Goerges, the 22 year-old rising star from Germany, defeated World No. 1 Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark for the 2nd time in two weeks. Goerges won the 3rd round of the 2011 WTA Mutua Madrilena Madrid Open in Madrid, Spain in a see-saw 3-set match ending up 6-4, 1-6, 6-3.

Azarenka triumphs over Sharapova

No. 8 seed, Victoria Azarenka of Belarus easily triumphed over No. 16 seed, Maria Sharapova of Russia in a straight-sets victory, 6-1, 6-4, in the Final of the 2011 WTA Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on Saturday.

Azarenka came out with guns blazing, while Sharapova hardly got her guns out of the holster, with the resulting match not really what we would expect from a WTA Final. Azarenka broke serve the first eight times Sharapova served, taking a 6-1, 4-0 lead before Sharapova held serve for the first and only time. Sharapova then broke Azarenka’s serve twice to bring it up to 4-5, giving a little glimpse of hope. But Azarenka closed it out at 6-4.

Azarenka and Sharapova reach final

No. 8 seed, Victoria Azarenka and No. 16 seed, Maria Sharapova, will face off on Saturday in the Final of the 2011 WTA Sony Ericsson Open in Miami.

They are tied at 2-2 in career matches, with Azarenka winning their last match in last year’s Stanford final, 6-4, 6-1.

Azarenka defeated No. 3 seed, Vera Zvonareva 6-0, 6-3 in her Semifinal match, while Sharapova took down Andrea Petkovic 3-6, 6-0, 6-2.

Clijsters stuns Ivanovic with epic comeback

Kim Clijsters pulled out an amazing comeback in round 4 of the 2011 WTA Sony Ericsson Open in Miami on March 29, stunning Ana Ivanovic who looked to have the match in the bag.

Leading 5-1, 40-0 in the decisive third set against No. 2 seed, Clijsters, No. 19 seed Ivanovic was one point away from the biggest win of her recent comeback. But then the wheels came off. Those three match points were wiped away. Two more followed. By the time it was over, Clijsters had prevailed 7-5 in the third-set tiebreaker and completed the most epic comeback on the WTA this year. And Ivanovic had a broken racquet.