TENNIS in DEPTH.

Ivanovic is just one of several top players expected to lead to sellout crowds at the Perth event as tickets go onsale tomorrow, and will be joined by Novak Djokovic, Serena Williams,  Justine Henin and Andy Murray. Ivanovic last played in Perth as a budding 18-year-old rising up the ranks, hitting world No. 1 two years later, but will return as a Tour expert rebounding from a form-slump that had her fall as low as No. 65 earlier this year. “When I was coming up, I didn’t really have many setbacks – it was just all the way up,” Ivanovic said. “But when I got there I was like, ‘okay, so now what?’ and I made some bad decisions, for example I trained too hard and got injured. “But I learned from the whole thing and I’m in a much better position now … I feel like I’ve set up a good platform for the new season, starting in Perth.” Ivanovic will team with Djokovic, as she did in 2006, and is guaranteed to face Henin in a battle of the former world No. 1s, with Serbia and Belgium drawn in the same pool for the mixed-teams event.”I actually didn’t know that, that’s great to hear,” Ivanovic said. “Obviously there isn’t much time to prepare for the Australian Open in terms of getting in tough matches, so that is a nice bonus, a nice guarantee that I’ll play at least one very, very tough opponent. “I can honestly say that playing the Hopman Cup in 2006 is one of my very best memories in tennis.

“I am good friends with Novak Djokovic, we’ve known each other since we were kids, and when I was invited back it was a very easy decision to make.”

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Robin Soderling has become the fifth player to qualify for the season-ending ATP World Tour Finals in London. The Swede, a semi-finalist at the event last season, missed a chance to seal his spot in the field this week when he lost in the quarter-finals of the Stockholm Open. However, Soderling is now guaranteed to finish among the world’s top eight following Saturday’s draws for next week’s ATP tournaments. “I’ve always dreamed about playing at the World Tour Finals. I had some really good memories from last year. Hopefully I can take that experience and do even better this time,” said Soderling, who made the final of the French Open back in June.

“There are only eight players and you play against the world’s best so every match you play could be like a Grand Slam final. I will have to be ready from the first match.” Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray had already booked their spots in the elite eight-man field at the O2 Arena, so three places remain up for grabs.

The London event takes place from November 21-28.

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Marcos Baghdatis will meet Viktor Troicki in the final of Kremlin Cup on Sunday after both men secured semi-final wins in Moscow. Fourth-seeded Cypriot Baghdatis was made to work hard for his shot at the title, taken to three sets by Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin but eventually prevailing 6-4 6-7 (5/7) 7-6 (7/2). Serbian Troicki had a more straightforward path to the final in the first last-four encounter of the day, seeing off Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas 6-3 6-3. “It was a good match for me,” said Troicki. “The match point was one of the best points of the tournament. “I tried to be aggressive and make him run a lot and I was successful. My form is getting better and better.”

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Victoria Azarenka booked her place in the final of the Kremlin Cup with a 6-3 6-3 win over Spain’s Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez in Moscow. The Belarussian will face Maria Kirilenko, who defeated her fellow Russian Vera Dushevina 6-1,6-1 in a one-sided semi final. Azarenka is chasing her fifth career win and second this year after beating Maria Sharapova in Stanford in July. The 21-year-old has already qualified for next week’s season-ending WTA Tour championships in Doha. Azarenka saved two break points in the opening game and did not face another one in the rest of the match. She broke the 28th-ranked Sanchez in the sixth game of the first set and in the first and eighth games of the second.

“Sanchez is such a player that you never know what to expect from her,” said Azarenka, who lost to the Spaniard twice earlier this season. “I’ve chosen the right tactics against her today and didn’t allow her to change the rhythm or advance to the net to attack as she likes doing. I’ve fought for every ball and that was the key to my victory.”

On the men’s front, Uruguay’s Pablo Cuevas takes on Serbian Viktor Troicki in the first semi-final followed by fourth-seeded Cypriot Macos Baghdatis against Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin.

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Roger Federer recovered from a nightmare first set to beat Swiss compatriot Stanislas Wawrinka and advance to the semi-finals of the Stockholm Open in the Swedish capital on Friday. Federer made a poor start and dropped the first set against Wawrinka, but fought back well to score an ultimately comfortable 2-6 6-3 6-2 success and move into the last four.

Second seed Robin Soderling failed to join Federer in the semis and must also wait to guarantee his place at the season-ending Barclays ATP World Tour finals in London after losing to Germany’s Florian Mayer. Mayer triumphed 7-6 (10/8) 6-1 to move into the last four where he was joined by fourth seed Ivan Ljubicic. The resurgent Ljubicic beat his compatriot, qualifier Ivan Dodig, 4-6 6-2 6-4.

Finland’s Jarkko Nieminen also made it through to the semi-finals with an emphatic win over American wild card James Blake. Nieminen needed just 50 minutes to polish off a 6-0 6-2 victory.

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Ana’s impressive run at the Luxembourg Open ended in the quarter-finals as she was beaten 6-3, 6-1 by Germany’s Julia Goerges. The 22-year-old, who was competing in her fifth tournament in five weeks and her 10th match in 10 days, was broken early on and was ultimately unable to compete with the German. Although Ana looked far from fresh, one must take nothing away from Goerges’ performance: she was simply outstanding. She served supremely well and hit an array of thunderbolt forehand winners to break Ana’s streak of seven successive straight sets victories. Goerges put Ana under pressure early on by blasting some fabulous returns and she was almost unapproachable on serve – she hit eight aces during the match. The German broke to lead 2-1. Ana missed a crucial break-back opportunity and chance to level the match when trailing 3-2. Goerges wrapped up the first set after a double fault from Ana on set point. The German continued her imposing rush to the semi-finals as she held serve to love in the opening game of the second set. Ana looked to regain her poise and she too raced to a 40-0 advantage on serve, but she let the lead slip and was broken for 2-0. Goerges was in total control, flawless in every department. Ana, on the other hand, racked up a number of unforced errors and she faced two match points at 5-1 down. She saved them both with some convincing play but the German closed out the match in exactly an hour on the third opportunity.

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Yanina Wickmayer was presented with her Fed Cup Heart Award at the recent $100k event in Torhout, Belgium. Wickmayer won the Heart Award for her efforts in the World Group play-offs in April, when she was instrumental in Belgium’s 3-2 win over Estonia. The victory secured Belgium a place in Fed Cup’s top tier for the first time since 2007, and Sabine Appelmans’s team will now enter next year’s competition as one of the favourites.

“As an athlete it gives me great satisfaction to play for my country,” said Wickmayer. “I find it a great honour to receive this award chosen from an international jury.” Wickmayer has been the driving force behind Belgium’s surge back to the World Group, as Clijsters and Henin were both making their first Fed Cup appearances since 2006. “I’d like to congratulate Yanina after her outstanding performance in April helped Belgium gain promotion back to the World Group,” said ITF President Francesco Ricci Bitti. “Yanina hasn’t missed a Fed Cup tie since making her debut in 2007, which demonstrates a strong commitment to both her team and the competition as a whole.”

Wickmayer, who was up against Daniela Hantuchova, Samantha Stosur and Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez, was decided the winner by a public vote held on the official Fed Cup website.

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Los Angeles Lakers guard Sasha Vujacic says he’s engaged to marry Russian tennis star Maria Sharapova. “We are engaged and are both really happy,” Vujacic said Thursday night before the Lakers’ exhibition game against Golden State. “It’s good and now we can focus on other things.” The agent for three-time Grand Slam champion Sharapova confirmed the news in an e-mail to The Associated Press. Vujacic said he proposed on the one-year anniversary of their first meeting at a friend’s barbecue. “It’s was probably old school,” Vujacic said. “I had to do it like a gentlemen.”

Vujacic proposed to Sharapova on Tuesday at his Manhattan Beach home in California. He gave her a massive engagement rock to rival any Lakers championship ring. Sharapova reportedly said “yes” and is also supposed to be sporting a very large engagement ring.

Vujacic said a wedding date hasn’t been set. The Slovenian guard returned to action Thursday, a week after getting a concussion when teammate Lamar Odom accidentally elbowed him in the face during practice. Vujacic averaged 2.8 points and 1.2 rebounds in 67 games for the Lakers last season, his sixth with the club. Sharapova won her first major title at Wimbledon in 2004, when she was 17. She went on to win the 2006 U.S. Open and 2008 Australian Open and also reached No. 1 in the WTA rankings. After shoulder surgery and an elbow injury forced her to miss time the past two seasons, Sharapova is currently ranked 18th.

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