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As a Familiar Face Looks On, Li Routs Sharapova to Reach the Final Li to Meet Azarenka in Women’s Final
(about 3 hours later)
MELBOURNE, Australia — It still does not look quite right to see Carlos Rodriguez working for anyone but Justine Henin as he sits in the players box wearing his poker face and ball cap.        MELBOURNE, Australia — It will be Li Na versus Victoria Azarenka in the women’s final at the Australian Open, and though Li’s straight-set victory over Maria Sharapova in their semifinal Thursday brooked no argument, the same could not be said for Azarenka’s straight-set victory over the 19-year-old American Sloane Stephens.
For years, Rodriguez was Henin’s mentor and tactician in chief, a diminutive, Argentine-born coach who systematically helped the sensitive Henin overcome her fears and limitations to become the world’s No. 1 player and a multiple Grand Slam champion.        While the sixth-seeded Li romped 6-2, 6-2, playing one of the finest and most composed big matches of her career, the top-seeded Azarenka struggled to keep her cool on this steamy day in Melbourne, when temperatures hit 97.
But Rodriguez is back at the heart of the women’s game, and he was in the stands again on a steamy Thursday afternoon observing every nuance as his new pupil, Li Na, played one of the best big matches of her career to defeat Maria Sharapova, 6-2, 6-2 to reach the Australian Open final.        Serving for the match against Stephens at 5-3 in the second set, she failed to convert on five match points and was eventually broken when Stephens slapped a forehand winner down the line.
That the sixth-seeded Li could beat the second-seeded Sharapova was no big surprise. One of China’s biggest sports stars, Li is one of the game’s true quality players and was a finalist here in 2011, but that she could beat Sharapova so easily was definitely a surprise.        When Azarenka walked to her seat for the changeover, she wrapped a towel stuffed with ice around her neck and was examined by a trainer and physician. She eventually left the court for further treatment, which meant that Stephens, in her first Grand Slam semifinal, was left waiting as she was about to serve to stay in the match.
Sharapova had lost just nine games in five matches heading into the semifinal. Mischievous number crunchers were calculating her earnings per minute of court time: well over $1,000.        Azarenka eventually returned to the court six minutes later, and the overall break in play was close to 10 minutes. The time allotted on a normal changeover is 90 seconds.
But Li, who shares the same agent  (Max Eisenbud), will end up with the bigger paycheck after feasting on Sharapova’s second serve and winning a clear majority of their physical baseline rallies.        Stephens, who had the upset tournament favorite Serena Williams in the quarterfinals, proceeded to lose her serve and the match 6-1, 6-4.
Asked if her lack of a major test in the earlier rounds might have played a role in her minor-key performance on Thursday, Sharapova demurred.  “I can’t think of it that way; I certainly can’t use that as an excuse,” she said. “When I go into any match, I’m trying to win with the best scoreline I can. That’s my goal. It was not immediately clear why Azarenka required treatment. Though medical timeouts are permitted by the rules at that stage of a match, the timing of her break in play was immediately questioned by many in the tennis community who viewed it as potential gamesmanship.
“Today I felt like I had my fair share of opportunities,” she said. “It’s not like they weren’t there. I just couldn’t take them today.”        “An absolute travesty,” said Patrick McEnroe, the ESPN analyst who is also head of the United States Tennis Association’s player development program that has helped to back Stephens.
Sharapova’s average second-serve speed was a very respectable 93 miles per hour, but she won just 6 of 24 points with it as Li broke her serve seven times in all. She was also particularly effective in stretching the 6-foot-2 Sharapova wide to her forehand with sliced serves and well-struck crosscourt forehands of her own. Sharapova’s forehand, when she is on balance, is a major weapon, but less effective on the run.        In her post-match interview, Azarenka, the defending champion, did not immediately explain if she was suffering from a legitimate injury or medical condition. But she made it clear that she had been distraught.
“She was aggressive,” Sharapova said. “She was taking the first ball and doing something with it, and when I was trying to, I was making too many unforced errors.”        She was asked why she had gone off court.
Sharapova still holds an 8-5 record over Li and won all three of their matches in 2012 when Li struggled to produce an encore to her remarkable 2011 season, when she reached the final at the Australian Open and then became the first Chinese player to win a Grand Slam singles title at the French Open.        “Well, I almost did the choke of the year right now at 5-3, having so many chances I couldn’t close it out. I just felt a little bit overwhelmed. I realized I’m one step away from the final and nerves got into me for sure.”
But she appears to be re-gathering momentum in 2013, six months after she and her husband, Jiang Shan, made the mutual decision to demote Jiang from coach back to husband and hire Rodriguez.        Asked if she was happy, Azarenka responded: “Until 5-3, yes, very happy. After that, it wasn’t my best, but it’s important to overcome this little bit of a struggle and win the match. I’m definitely happy to be in the final. I just love to play here, and I just couldn’t lose. That’s why I was so upset.”
He has been pushing Li particularly hard in physical training, and Li, who likes a joke, turned toward Rodriguez and the rest of her team during her postmatch interview and gave a new directive.        Stephens said she did not believe the long break had an impact on the outcome.
“You don’t need to push me anymore,” she said. “I will push me.” “It didn’t go my way, but I wouldn’t say at all that her, what happened, affected the match,” Stephens said.
Rodriguez knows Sharapova’s game very well and also knows what it takes to beat her. Henin, who retired in 2011 because of an elbow problem, was 7-3 during her career against the much taller Sharapova. That Li could beat the second-seeded Sharapova was no great surprise. One of China’s biggest sports stars, Li is one of the game’s true quality players and was a finalist here in 2011. But it was definitely a surprise that she could beat Sharapova as comprehensively as she did Thursday.
Sharapova had lost just nine games in five matches heading into the semifinal. Mischievous number-crunchers were calculating her earnings per minute of court time: well over $1,000.
But Li will end up with the bigger paycheck in Melbourne after feasting on Sharapova’s second serve and winning a clear majority of their physical baseline rallies.
Asked if her lack of a major test in the earlier rounds might have played a role in her minor-key performance on Thursday, Sharapova demurred.
“I can’t think of it that way; I certainly can’t use that as an excuse,” she said. “When I go into any match, I’m trying to win with the best scoreline I can. That’s my goal.”
“Today I felt like I had my fair share of opportunities. It’s not like they weren’t there. I just couldn’t take them today.”
Sharapova’s average second-serve speed was a very respectable 94 miles per hour, but she won just 6 of 24 points with it as Li broke her serve seven times in all. She was also particularly effective in stretching the 6-foot-2 Sharapova wide to her forehand with sliced serves and well-struck crosscourt forehands of her own.
Sharapova’s forehand, when she is on balance, is a major weapon, but it is less effective on the run.
“She was aggressive,” Sharapova said. “She was taking the first ball and doing something with it and when I was trying to, I was making too many unforced errors.”
Sharapova still holds an 8-5 record over Li and won all three of their matches in 2012, when Li struggled to produce an encore to her remarkable 2011 season, when she reached the final at the Australian Open and then became the first Chinese player to win a Grand Slam singles title at the French Open.
But she appears to be regaining momentum in 2013, six months after she and her husband Jiang Shan made the mutual decision to demote Jiang from coach back to husband and to hire Carlos Rodriguez.
For years, Rodriguez was Justine Henin’s mentor and tactician in chief: the diminutive, Argentine-born coach who systematically helped the sensitive Belgian star overcome her fears and limitations to become the world’s No.1 player and a multiple Grand Slam champion.
But Rodriguez is back at the heart of the women’s game, and he was in the stands on Thursday afternoon.
He has been pushing Li particularly hard in training, and Li, who likes a joke, turned toward Rodriguez and the rest of her team during her post-match interview on Thursday and gave a new directive.
“You don’t need to push me anymore,” she said. “I will push me.” Rodriguez knows Sharapova’s game very well and also knows what it takes to beat her. Henin, who retired in 2011 because of an elbow problem, was 7-3 during her career against the much taller Russian.
And though Li and Henin are different players — Henin’s signature shot was a one-handed backhand — they share a certain innate vulnerability. Li has struggled with her on-court composure over the years and lost memorably but painfully at last year’s Australian Open in the fourth round to Kim Clijsters after holding four match points and a 6-2 lead in the second-set tiebreaker.And though Li and Henin are different players — Henin’s signature shot was a one-handed backhand — they share a certain innate vulnerability. Li has struggled with her on-court composure over the years and lost memorably but painfully at last year’s Australian Open in the fourth round to Kim Clijsters after holding four match points and a 6-2 lead in the second-set tiebreaker.
But Li held on Thursday, closing out the match on her second match point, and she has yet to drop a set in this tournament despite a difficult draw that included Julia Goerges in the fourth round, the fourth-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska in the quarterfinals and now Sharapova, who was in the hunt for the No. 1 ranking. But Li held on Thursday, closing out the match on her second match point, and she has yet to drop a set in this tournament despite a difficult draw that included Julia Görges in the fourth round, the fourth-seeded and in-form Agnieszka Radwanska in the quarterfinals and now Sharapova, who was in the hunt for the No. 1 ranking.
Her return to the final should spark greater interest in China than in Melbourne, where the women’s semifinals on Thursday were not sold out and where there are still tickets available for Saturday’s women’s final (the later men’s rounds have long been sold out).        Her return to the final here should spark greater interest in China than in Melbourne, where the women’s semifinals on Thursday were not sold out and where there are still tickets available for women’s final on Saturday. (The later men’s rounds have long been sold out).
Her success here was also the latest coup for veteran players. Serena Williams won two Grand Slam singles titles and the Olympic gold medal last year at age 30. Li is 30 herself, something that the retired player turned Australian television presenter Rennae Stubbs likes to tease her about.        Li’s success here was also the latest coup for veteran players. Serena Williams won two Grand Slam singles titles and the Olympic gold medal last year at age 30. Li is 30 now herself, something that the retired player turned Australian television anchor Rennae Stubbs teased her about.
But as Sharapova rediscovered, Li has a dangerous return of serve, and when Stubbs made mention of Li’s age in the post-match interview, Li smiled.        But as Sharapova rediscovered, Li has a dangerous return of serve, and when Stubbs made mention of Li’s age in the post-match interview, Li smiled.
“You know,” Li said, “The truth is I’m younger than you.”“You know,” Li said, “The truth is I’m younger than you.”