28/08/2010 10:02 CEST - Wta tour

Carol and Vera: falls and rises

A few prominent falls have occurred in Charleston over the years, one dating back to Feb. 22, 1865 when the Union Army took control of Fort Sumter. James Beck

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But the two most recent big falls came on the usually friendly green clay of Family Circle Magazine Stadium. And those two spills played major roles in the landscape of the WTA Tour the last two years.
Both falls involved players who met in Monday's rain-delayed final of the Rogers Cup in Montreal, Caroline Wozniacki and Vera Zvonareva.
Not only are these two players' profiles bunched close to each other in the last pages of the WTA Tour's current guide, Wozniacki and Zvonareva have been on the same court for several of their highlight performances. Monday's straight-set win by Wozniacki was one of those instances, this one making a statement that both players are completely back from their "Charleston Falls."
Zvonareva was even on the other side of the court when Wozniacki took her tumble in this spring's Family Circle Cup in a semifinal showdown. Zvonareva also was the player who took the earlier Charleston fall during the 2009 Family Circle Cup in which Wozniacki made headlines by being runner-up to Sabine Lisicki.

TWO FALLS PLAYED MAJOR ROLES
While the falls by Zvonareva and Wozniacki looked terrible, they might have otherwise been fairly harmless, if it hadn't been for those fickle right ankles and the sudden twists and turns that often accompany falls on a tennis court. The two spectacular stumbles played major roles in the careers of players who were ranked among the world's top 10 at the time of the falls.
Only now are things finally getting back to normal for both of these women. Both are ranked in the top 10 in the latest WTA Tour rankings. Wozniacki now even has designs on overtaking the sidelined Serena Williams as the top-ranked player in the women's game. The Danish 20-year-old is gaining, especially after capturing her most prestigious title Monday with a victory over who else but Zvonareva.

EVERYTHING COMES TOGETHER IN MONTREAL
When Wozniacki stumbled and practically did a flip while chasing a Zvonareva drop shot last year in Charleston, it looked pretty bad for Wozniacki. She tried to continue playing that day, but couldn't finish the match. The ankle injury didn't go away as Wozniacki struggled for much of the next four months before finally winning a tournament earlier this month in Copenhagen.
But in Montreal, everything came together for Wozniacki. The athletic, eye-catching blonde defeated Patty Schnyder, Flavia Pennetta, Francesca Schiavone and Svetlana Kuznetsova before running into Zvonareva. As usual, the never-say-quit Wozniacki was a picture of consistency against the Russian, fighting for every point.
There probably were a half-dozen points that if they had gone for Zvonareva rather than Wozniacki, the tournament might have had a different champion. But the talented Danish player would hear none of that with her full-court coverage. Certainly, the score could have been much closer than the final 6-3, 6-2 winning edge for Wozniacki.

ZVONAREVA FULLY RECOVERED
It appears that Zvonareva is back finally from the ankle injury she suffered in a fall in the 2009 Family Circle Cup. She was on top of her game at the time of the injury, having just won the super tournament at Indian Wells. Her results were less than spectacular the last eight months of 2009. But the tide has turned in 2010 in Zvonareva's favor. Not only did she advance to the final of this year's Family Circle Cup before losing to Samantha Stosur's thunderous serve and forehand, she won a $220,000 tournament in Thailand in February. And now the Montreal near-miss is another highlight.
Zvonareva may be the last player listed in this year's WTA Tour guide, but her game is far from the end.
The soon-to-be 26-year-old Russian (her birthday is Sept. 7) apparently has put last year's bad luck behind her and is very capable of moving higher than her current eighth ranking in the world, even higher than her previous best ranking of No. 5.

END OF THE ALPHABET LOOKS GOOD
Going forward, it would appear that both of these two women with the "End of the Alphabet" names have bright futures, especially the younger Wozniacki. She's already the No. 1 seed in the U.S. Open, thanks to Serena Williams' foot injury.
Unless I miss my guess, Caroline Wozniacki will be the No. 1 player in the world very soon -- unless, of course, there's another tumble. Maybe it's a good thing that the Family Circle Cup won't roll around again until next April.
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James Beck is the long-time tennis columnist for the Charleston (S.C.) Post and Courier newspaper and winner of the USTA's national media excellence award. He can be reached at Jamesbecktennis@gmail.com
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See James Beck's Post and Courier columns at:
http://web.charleston.net/news/columnists/james_beck/

James Beck