2013 Tennis Thread

Nadal into last four at Vina del Mar

Rafael Nadal's recovery from injury continued with a smooth 6-1 6-4 quarter-final win over Daniel Gimeno at ATP Vina del Mar.
Top seed Nadal's straight-sets win over his compatriot sets up a semi-final meeting with Frenchman Jeremy Chardy, who later defeated Italy's Paolo Lorenzi in straight sets, 6-2 6-3.
The other semi will be an all-Argentina affair after Carlos Berlocq took a walk-over in his quarter final against Guillaume Rufin, while Horacio Zeballos saw off Albert Ramos 6-1 5-7 7-6 with a deciding-set tie-break victory.
Nadal broke Gimeno-Traver three times and wiped away four break points against his serve in the final game of the match to wrap up the quarter-final victory in 84 minutes.
"Today I had more confidence than the other days," said Nadal. "That is positive. It gives me confidence, and reasons to believe that I'm on the right way.
"I'm happy to win in singles against a tough opponent like Dani and to reach the semi-finals after seven months.
"In this tournament I had a good feeling. The crowd gave me their support all the time. It helps a lot when you come with a bad feeling."
The 11-time Grand Slam champion is looking to clinch the title on his season debut, having been sidelined for seven months with a left knee injury.

ATP Vina del Mar results

1-Rafa Nadal (Spain) beat 7-Daniel Gimeno-Traver (Spain) 6-1 6-4

3-Jeremy Chardy (France) beat 6-Paolo Lorenzi (Italy) 6-2 6-3

Horacio Zeballos (Argentina) beat 5-Albert Ramos (Spain) 6-1 5-7 7-6(6)

8-Carlos Berlocq (Argentina) beat Guillaume Rufin (France) WO
 
Top seed and local favourite Marin Cilic eased past Blaz Kavcic in straight sets in the final last-eight encounter, but compatriot Ivan Dodig lost handily to third seed Mikhail Youzhny.

ATP Zagreb quarter-final results:

1-Marin Cilic (Croatia) beat Blaz Kavcic (Slovenia) 6-3 7-6(5)

ATP Montpellier quarter-final results:

3-Richard Gasquet (France) beat 6-Julien Benneteau (France) 6-1 4-6 6-1
 
Smallville22 said:
Robson leads GB to win over Portugal

Olympic silver medallist Laura Robson dropped just six games in two matches as Great Britain remain unbeaten in their Fed Cup campaign in Israel.
After Thursday's win over Bosnia and Herzegovina, Judy Murray's team were given a tougher examination by Portugal.
Robson, who won Olympic mixed doubles silver with Andy Murray at London 2012, beat Margarida Moura 6-2 6-1 before Heather Watson lost 6-1 6-4 to Michelle Larcher De Brito.
However, Robson and Watson combined to win their doubles encounter over Larcher De Brito and Joana Vale Costa 6-2, 6-1 for a 2-1 victory for Britain.
Murray's team will now face Hungary in their final pool encounter on Saturday and another win on Sunday would see them advance to the World Group II play-offs in April.
Click to expand...

:error: :update: Title was wrong, it is Portugal, not Israel who lost to GB.
 
Robson and Watson set up GB play-off in Israel
Laura Robson and Heather Watson won as Great Britain downed Hungary in the Fed Cup to reach the play-offs in Israel.

Robson overcame a shoulder problem to overcome world number 138 Greta Arn 0-6 6-2 6-1.
"After the first set I thought, 'this can't get any worse,'" admitted Robson. "I regrouped and played better in the second and third sets."
Watson followed it up with a routine 6-3 6-2 victory over Timea Babos, ranked 79 in the world.
Coupled with victories over Bosnia-Herzegovina and Portugal in Eilat this week, GB have swept through their pool group unbeaten and with one more victory could seal promotion to World Group II.
On Sunday GB will take on Bulgaria for that place in the play-offs.
 
Nadal creates management company

Rafa Nadal has set up his own company to manage athletes and organise events with his long-term agent Carlos Costa.
"Together with his manager, Carlos Costa, Rafa Nadal began a new adventure on Jan. 1 in the world of representing athletes of various sports like tennis, golf and football as well as organising events," Nadal's spokesman said.
Spaniard Nadal, who is making his return from a seven-month injury layoff at this week's clay event in Vina del Mar, Chile, was previously represented by US-based firm IMG, for whom Costa also worked.
He earned $25 million in endorsements last year from companies including Kia Motors and Nike, according to Forbes, putting him equal 16th on the magazine's list of the world's highest-paid athletes.
IMG spokesman Jim Gallagher confirmed Nadal's contract with the company had expired at the end of 2012.
"We are very happy for Rafa and we wish him the best of luck," Gallagher said by telephone from New Jersey.
"We hope to do a lot more business with him in the future," he added.
Nadal is the second high-profile tennis player to leave IMG in recent months.
Roger Federer, the world number two, and his agent Tony Godsick both severed ties with the firm last year.
 
Cilic battles through to Zagreb final

Top seed Marin Cilic had to battle hard to secure his place in the final of ATP Zagreb with a 4-6 6-4 6-3 win over Mikhail Youzhny.
The world number 12 had to recover from a set down to beat the Russian in two hours and 28 minutes in what was a gruelling semi-final to seal his progression through to the tournament showpiece.
Cilic will next take on fourth seed Jurgen Melzer of Austria, after the world number 29 beat Robin Haase 7-6(2) 6-3 on the indoor surface.

ATP Zagreb results

1-Marin Cilic (Croatia) beat 3-Mikhail Youzhny (Russia) 4-6 6-4 6-3

4-Jurgen Melzer (Austria) beat Robin Haase (Netherlands) 7-6(2) 6-3

ATP Montpellier results

3-Richard Gasquet (France) beat Jarkko Nieminen (Finland) 6-3 3-6 6-2

8-Benoit Paire (France) beat Michael Llodra (France) 4-6 6-3 6-1
 
Improving Nadal makes final in Chile

Rafael Nadal continued his impressive return from injury by beating Jeremy Chardy in the semi-finals of the ATP Vina del Mar event.
The Spaniard, playing his first tournament in seven months, was too strong for the third seeded Frenchman as he raced to a 6-2 6-2 win in just 65 minutes.
He will face the unseeded Horacio Zeballos in the final after the Argentine beat his compatriot Carlos Berlocq 6-3 7-6 (4) in the other semi-final.
Nadal is also in the doubles final as he and partner Juan Monaco look to defeat Paolo Lorenzi and Potito Starace.
"I played well today, better than the days before, which is important," said Nadal after his win over Chardy.
"I won't compare myself to seven months ago, it's just the first week of competition. It's a great feeling to be in a final match after so much time without playing.
"(The final) will be a tough match against Horacio, who is playing great tennis. I hope to keep enjoying myself like I've been doing during this tournament and that my physical condition remains good."
If Nadal wins the event in Chile it will be 37th clay-court title of his career.
 
Czechs take control against Australia

Petra Kvitova and Lucie Safarova handed holders Czech Republic a 2-0 lead over Australia after the first day of their Fed Cup World Group tie in the Czech city of Ostrava on Saturday.
In the first rubber, Kvitova, the Czech number one and world number eight, beat Australia's 168-ranked Jarmila Gajdosova 7-6(2), 6-3 in an hour and 35 minutes.
Two tie-breaks were required for Safarova, the world number 18, as she won 7-6(6), 7-6(4) against Samantha Stosur in two hours and 28 minutes.
Kvitova, the 2011 Wimbledon champion who led the Czechs to Fed Cup victories in 2011 and 2012, continues to thrive in the Cup for her country.
"It wasn't an easy match and she had moments when she played very well, but she also helped me a few times," the 22-year-old Kvitova said. "I was terribly nervous in the first set."
On Sunday, Kvitova will first face Stosur. If she gives the Czechs a winning 3-0 lead, the tie will go straight to doubles, while if she loses, Safarova will take on Gajdosova.
In the doubles, Czechs Andrea Hlavackova and Lucie Hradecka, the world numbers three and four in the format, will face Australian Open finalists Casey Dellacqua and 16-year-old Ashleigh Barty.

World Group results

Italy 1-1 USA

Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) beat Roberta Vinci (Italy) 2-6 6-4 7-5

Sara Errani (Italy) beat Jamie Hampton (U.S.) 6-2 6-1

Czech Republic 2-0 Australia

Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) beat Samantha Stosur (Australia) 7-6(6) 7-6(4)

Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Jarmila Gajdosova (Australia) 7-6(2) 6-3

Serbia 1-1 Slovakia

Vesna Dolonc (Serbia) beat Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) 4-6 4-5 (Cibulkova retired)

Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) beat Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia) 7-5 6-2

Russia 1-1 Japan

Ayumi Morita (Japan) beat Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) 6-2 6-2

Maria Kirilenko (Russia) beat Kimiko Date-Krumm (Japan) 7-6(3) 6-4(0)
 
Watson, Robson send Britain into World Group II play-offs

Heather Watson and Laura Robson completed a fine Fed Cup performance for Great Britain in Eilat to once again book a place in the World Group II play-offs at the expense of Bulgaria.
Watson and Robson, who both competed at the London 2012 Olympics, the latter winning mixed doubles silver with Andy Murray, both contributed as Britain topped their pool in Israel.
Britain beat Bosnia and Herzegovina 3-0 and Portugal and Hungary both 2-1 to set up a clash in the Europe/Africa Zone Group I promotional play-offs against Bulgaria, who they brushed aside.
Robson began the winning performance against Bulgaria by seeing off Dia Evtimova, ranked 208 places below her in 253rd in the world, in straight sets 6-0, 6-4.
And then Watson completed it against more testing opposition in Tsvetana Pirnokova, who is ranked just three places behind her in the world in 44th, 1-6, 6-4, 6-2.
Britain join Poland in progressing through to the World Group II play-offs in April where they will hope to fare better than they did last year.
Sweden proved too much of a ***** in the 2012 World Group II play-offs as they ran out 4-1 winners against Elena Baltacha, Anne Keothavong, Robson and Watson.
 
:drawheart: Well done, Hev!

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With a win in the playoffs in April, Britain can return to the Top 16 nations for the first time since 1991 - when Laura and Heather weren't even born.

Some pictures of the girls in Israel

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Gasquet wins at home to seal second title of the season

World number 10 Richard Gasquet clinched his second title of the year by easily beating fellow Frenchman Benoit Paire 6-2 6-3 in the Montpellier Open on Sunday.
Gasquet, who had already won in Doha last month, took one hour and nine minutes to cruise past the 43th-ranked Paire.
The 26-year-old Gasquet, born only 40 miles from Montpellier, now has nine trophies to his name and his win on Sunday was the first time he had landed multiple titles in a single year since 2006.
"Three years ago, it was an incredible feeling to know that an event was going to take place in Montpellier, knowing that I would have a few opportunities to win it," Gasquet said on the court.
"It was one of my goals. I won in front of my friends, my ****** who were all in the stands. It's wonderful to have won two titles this season.
The world number 10 made a perfect start, breaking his opponent's serve in the first game before holding to swiftly take a 2-0 lead.
He proved too solid for the 23-year-old Paire and broke him a second time with a trademark backhand in the seventh game before wrapping it up 6-2 in 23 minutes.
Gasquet again took command with another break in the fifth game of the second set, only to see Paire level to 3-3 immediately, though he eventually tightened his grip to grab the last three games and extend his season win-loss record to 14-1.
 
Russia hold nerve to make semi-finals

Russia held their nerves in the deciding doubles match to beat Japan in Moscow to make the semi-finals of the Fed Cup.
The sides were level after Saturday's opening matches, and still could not be parted after the two singles rubbers on Sunday as Ekateina Makarova beat Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-1 6-1 after Ayumi Morita had put Japan 2-0 up with a 6-4 6-1 win over Elena Vesnina.
But Makarova and Vesnina were more than a match for Morita and Misaki Doi in the doubles, roaring to a crushing 6-2 6-2 victory.
Russia will play Slovakia in April for a place in the semi-finals, with the Slovaks having beaten Serbia 3-1 thanks in large part to superb wins by Daniela Hantuchova over first Bojana Jovanovski and then Vesna Dolonic.
The Czech Republic also went through as they brushed Australia aside, with Petra Kvitova and Lucie Safarova clinching the match 3-0 after the third rubber before Lucie Hradecka and Andrea Hlavackova won the dead rubber doubles to make it a 4-0 rout.
The Czechs will face either Italy or the USA in their semi-final, with the match heading to doubles decider in Rimini with Nastassja Burnett and Karin Knapp taking on Liezel Huber and Melanie Oudin.

Quarter-final results:

Russia 3-2 Japan

On Saturday

Ayumi Morita (Japan) beat Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) 6-2 6-2

Maria Kirilenko (Russia) beat Kimiko Date-Krumm (Japan) 7-6(3) 6-4(0)

On Sunday

Ekaterina Makarova/Elena Vesnina (Russia) beat Misaki Doi/Ayumi Morita (Japan) 6-2 6-2

Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) beat Kimiko Date-Krumm (Japan) 6-1 6-1

Ayumi Morita (Japan) beat Elena Vesnina (Russia) 6-4 6-1

Slovakia 3-1 Serbia

On Saturday

Vesna Dolonc (Serbia) beat Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) 4-6 4-5 (Cibulkova retired) Ret.

Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) beat Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia) 7-5 6-2

On Sunday

Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) beat Vesna Dolonc (Serbia) 6-3 6-2

Jana Cepelova (Slovakia) beat Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia) 5-7 7-5 11-9

Czech Republic 4-0 Australia

On Saturday

Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) beat Samantha Stosur (Australia) 7-6(6) 7-6(4)

Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Jarmila Gajdosova (Australia) 7-6(2) 6-3

On Sunday

Andrea Hlavackova/Lucie Hradecka (Czech Republic) beat Ashleigh Barty/Casey Dellacqua (Australia) 6-0 7-6(1)

Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Samantha Stosur (Australia) 2-6 7-6(3) 6-4

Italy 2-2 USA

On Saturday

Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) beat Roberta Vinci (Italy) 2-6 6-4 7-5

Sara Errani (Italy) beat Jamie Hampton (U.S.) 6-2 6-1

On Sunday

Roberta Vinci (Italy) beat Jamie Hampton (U.S.) 6-2 4-6 6-1

Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) beat Sara Errani (Italy) 7-5 6-2
 
Cilic wins third ATP Zagreb title

Top seed Marin Cilic clinched his third ATP Zagreb title with a 6-3 6-1 victory over Jurgen Melzer on Sunday.
The Croat, who came into the match with a 6-2 head-to-head lead over the Austrian, was able to come through the showpiece match in 67 minutes with a composed display.
Cilic, who is currently ranked at number 12 in the world, also managed to lift the trophy in 2009 and 2010 and now has a 9-7 record in ATP World Tour finals.
Melzer, who recorded his 300th match win on Friday against Lukas Rosol in the quarter-finals, has now dropped to a 4-8 record in title matches.
 
Zeballos stuns Nadal in Chilean Open final

Argentine Horacio Zeballos sprung a major surprise by beating Rafa Nadal 6-7 (2) 7-6 (6) 6-4 to win the Chilean Open on Sunday and clinch the first title of his career.
World number 73 Zeballos held his nerve in the final set, breaking Nadal when he was serving to stay in the match to seal victory after almost three hours in the Pacific coast city of Vina del Mar.
"I'm shocked. I've beaten one of the best players of tennis history. It's an incredible sensation," an emotional Zeballos said.
"I still think I'm dreaming. It's an honour playing against him. I enjoyed being with him at the locker room, eating with him. He's a great guy, I would like to ask him if he's from this planet," the Argentine added with a big smile.
Nadal was playing in his first tournament since suffering a shock defeat to the unfancied Lukas Rosol at Wimbledon last June, having been sidelined by a troublesome knee injury and his comeback delayed by illness.
He will continue playing on his favourite clay surface at two other Latin American events this month.
The French Open champion heads to the Brazil Open in Sao Paulo next week and the Mexico Open in Acapulco from Feb. 25.
"Although I didn't make it (to win the tournament), for me it is a huge achievement playing all the week," Nadal said when he received his runnerup trophy.
The 27-year-old Zeballos was competitive from the outset, but failed to exploit two break-points in the first set to allow Nadal a tiebreak, which the Spaniard comfortably wrapped up 7-2.
Zeballos hit back to win the second set tiebreak 8-6 and showed great poise to level at 1-1 in the decider after being broken in the first game.
Nadal struggled with his serve and was a shadow of the fired-up, fist-pumping competitor that has clinched 11 grand slam titles as he tired late in the match and lost key points without showing much emotion.
Local fans were won over by the Spaniard, who was gracious in defeat, however, and thanked the crowd for the support.
"This is one of the best weeks of the last months. I want to thank you all," he said.
 
Disgruntled Indian players form new association

Top Indian players formed an association on Monday to protect their professional interests days after signing a temporary truce with the All India Tennis Association.
The Indian Tennis Players Association said in a statement that it would function around the ATP model and act as a platform to represent the concerns of its members.
"We believe that the ITPA will provide the players a voice that will stand united in our concerns and suggestions for the improvement of the sport in the country," Somdev Devvarman, India's frontline singles player, said in the statement.
The AITA said they would wait for the association to approach the governing body for recognition and hoped it would not disrupt the ongoing discussions for a long-term understanding.
"We have heard about it. If they at all approach the federation for recognition, we will discuss it in the executive committee and convey to them our decision," AITA chief executive Hironmoy Chatterjee told Reuters by phone.
"For their own convenience they have formed an association and I can't see why the federation should have any problem with it."
Eleven frontline players, excluding 13-times grand slam doubles champion Leander Paes, pulled out of the regional first-round Davis Cup tie against South Korea in New Delhi earlier this month, which India lost 4-1.
Last week, the AITA agreed to most of their demands paving the way for the disgruntled players, including multiple doubles grand slam champion Mahesh Bhupathi, Devvarman and Rohan Bopanna, to commit to play in the April 5-7 tie against Indonesia.
 
Smallville22 said:
Russia hold nerve to make semi-finals

Russia held their nerves in the deciding doubles match to beat Japan in Moscow to make the semi-finals of the Fed Cup.
The sides were level after Saturday's opening matches, and still could not be parted after the two singles rubbers on Sunday as Ekateina Makarova beat Kimiko Date-Krumm 6-1 6-1 after Ayumi Morita had put Japan 2-0 up with a 6-4 6-1 win over Elena Vesnina.
But Makarova and Vesnina were more than a match for Morita and Misaki Doi in the doubles, roaring to a crushing 6-2 6-2 victory.
Russia will play Slovakia in April for a place in the semi-finals, with the Slovaks having beaten Serbia 3-1 thanks in large part to superb wins by Daniela Hantuchova over first Bojana Jovanovski and then Vesna Dolonic.
The Czech Republic also went through as they brushed Australia aside, with Petra Kvitova and Lucie Safarova clinching the match 3-0 after the third rubber before Lucie Hradecka and Andrea Hlavackova won the dead rubber doubles to make it a 4-0 rout.
The Czechs will face Italy in their semi-final after they defeated the USA in the deciding rubber on Sunday.

Quarter-final results:

Russia 3-2 Japan

On Saturday

Ayumi Morita (Japan) beat Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) 6-2 6-2

Maria Kirilenko (Russia) beat Kimiko Date-Krumm (Japan) 7-6(3) 6-4(0)

On Sunday

Ekaterina Makarova/Elena Vesnina (Russia) beat Misaki Doi/Ayumi Morita (Japan) 6-2 6-2

Ekaterina Makarova (Russia) beat Kimiko Date-Krumm (Japan) 6-1 6-1

Ayumi Morita (Japan) beat Elena Vesnina (Russia) 6-4 6-1

Slovakia 3-1 Serbia

On Saturday

Vesna Dolonc (Serbia) beat Dominika Cibulkova (Slovakia) 4-6 4-5 (Cibulkova retired) Ret.

Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) beat Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia) 7-5 6-2

On Sunday

Daniela Hantuchova (Slovakia) beat Vesna Dolonc (Serbia) 6-3 6-2

Jana Cepelova (Slovakia) beat Bojana Jovanovski (Serbia) 5-7 7-5 11-9

Czech Republic 4-0 Australia

On Saturday

Lucie Safarova (Czech Republic) beat Samantha Stosur (Australia) 7-6(6) 7-6(4)

Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Jarmila Gajdosova (Australia) 7-6(2) 6-3

On Sunday

Andrea Hlavackova/Lucie Hradecka (Czech Republic) beat Ashleigh Barty/Casey Dellacqua (Australia) 6-0 7-6(1)

Petra Kvitova (Czech Republic) beat Samantha Stosur (Australia) 2-6 7-6(3) 6-4

Italy 3-2 USA

On Saturday

Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) beat Roberta Vinci (Italy) 2-6 6-4 7-5

Sara Errani (Italy) beat Jamie Hampton (U.S.) 6-2 6-1

On Sunday

Roberta Vinci (Italy) beat Jamie Hampton (U.S.) 6-2 4-6 6-1

Varvara Lepchenko (U.S.) beat Sara Errani (Italy) 7-5 6-2

Sara Errani/Roberta Vinci (Italy) beat Liezel Huber/Varvara Lepchenko (United States) 6-2 6-2
Click to expand...

:update:
 
Nadal: Give me time before judging me

Rafa Nadal's worst defeat on a claycourt for nine years offered ammunition to the naysayers but the Spaniard says his recovery from knee injury should be judged over time.
The seven-times French Open champion's narrow loss to Argentine world number. 73 Horacio Zeballos in Vina del Mar on Sunday was rightly regarded as a shock as Nadal's defeats on clay over the past eight years can be counted on two hands.
Even those rare reversals have come against players of the calibre of Roger Federer and, most notably Novak Djokovic in 2011 and the last time he lost to a player outside the world's top 20 on clay was five years ago in Rome when former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero got the upper hand.
You have to go back to Palermo in 2004, before Nadal had won his first French title, to find the Spaniard losing to one of the game's journeymen, Frenchman Olivier Mutis who was then ranked outside the top 100.
Zeballos, who had never won a title before, played admirably but Nadal was clearly not firing on all cylinders despite reaching the final without dropping a set.
The analysis began immediately afterwards with all eyes focussed on Nadal's movement for signs of the left knee problems that meant he had not played since a shock defeat at Wimbledon last year to Lukas Rosol.
Worryingly for Nadal's million of fans, the 26-year-old openly admitted the knee was still causing him pain.
"The knee is still bothering me, but you have to face adversity with the best possible face and look forward to keep working and enjoy what I like the most, to play tennis," world No.5 Nadal said on the ATP website.
Whether or not the pain is just the result of not playing competitively for so long, or something more serious, remains to be seen but Nadal was clearly relieved that he could compete at a high level in the nine matches he played in six days, including doubles.
"A week ago we didn't know how the body would respond," the 11-times Grand Slam champion said.
"At least now I know we can compete at a certain level. I think that was a positive week.
"I will try to keep improving my physical sensations day by day, which is the most important thing because I don't feel that my tennis level is bad. I need more time on court."
Nadal's defeat was only his fifth in 41 clay-court finals with the others coming against Federer and Djokovic.
"I was two points away from winning the title, but I said from first day that the result was not the most important thing, although I would've liked to win," he said.
"To win four matches in a row is good news for me."
Nadal moves on to Sao Paulo this week for an indoor claycourt tournament and after a week off completes his south American comeback in Acapulco, Mexico.
Those two tournaments may offer a more reliable guide as to the chances of Nadal reaching peak from in time for the European clay-court swing in which he did not lose a match last year.
 
Federer calls for anti-doping passports

World number two Roger Federer has called for the introduction of biological passports in tennis similar to those used in cycling to detect possible doping.
"A ***** passport will be necessary as some substances can't be discovered right now but might in the future, and that risk of discovery can chase cheaters away," the 31-year-old Swiss said on the opening day of the World Indoor Tournament in Rotterdam.
"But there also should be more ***** tests and out of competition controls in tennis," he added.
According to figures on the International Tennis Federation website ( Premium Link Upgrade ), sport's governing body carried out only 21 out-of-competition ***** tests in the professional game in 2011.
Cycling's governing body the UCI carried out more than 3,314 out-of-competition ***** tests in the same year.
The UCI introduced biological passports in 2008 to track any ***** changes in riders against an original profile which could mean they had taken ******* substances.
"I didn't get tested on ***** after the Australian Open and I told the responsible people over there that it was a big surprise for me," said Federer, who lost to Briton Andy Murray in the semi-finals.
"But there also will be more funding needed to make all the tests possible and the Grand Slam tournaments should help to finance that as it is in their best interest to keep the sport clean and credible."
Federer said he had the impression that his sport was clean.
"The past years we had something like one case a year and often it had to do with unintentional mistakes made by players," he said. "But even then they should not make those mistakes and know the rules and live by them."
Defending champion Federer begins his quest for a third Rotterdam title against Slovenian Grega Zemlja on Wednesday.
 
Tsonga shocked in Rotterdam opener

French third seed Jo-Wilfried Tsonga suffered a shock 7-6 4-6 6-4 defeat by Dutch wildcard Igor Sijsling in the first round of the World Indoor Tournament in Rotterdam.
The 27-year-old Tsonga squandered five break points before surrendering the first set 7-3 in the tiebreak but appeared to have gained control of the match when he levelled the contest at one-set all.
But Tsonga's serve, which had produced 14 aces, collapsed in the 10th game of decisive set and that allowed his 77th-ranked opponent to pull off an unlikely victory.
"I can't say I played bad tennis but on this kind of surface matches are always tight," said Tsonga, the highest seed in action on Monday in a tournament headed by Roger Federer.
"It is disappointing to drop out early at such a big tournament."
Tsonga's compatriot Gilles Simon eased past German Daniel Brands with a 7-6 6-4.
Both players dropped their serve twice before Simon clinched the tiebreak and won the second to set up a second round match with Italian qualifier Matteo Viola.
The tournament’s first upset came when Romanian Victor Hanescu sent seventh seed Jerzy Janowicz of Poland crashing out 7-6(4) 6-3 while eighth seed Florian Mayer was later ousted by veteran Nikolay Davydenko 6-3 6-2.

ABN AMRO World Tennis Tournament round one results

Nikolay Davydenko (Russia) beat 8-Florian Mayer (Germany) 6-3 6-2

Grigor Dimitrov (Bulgaria) beat Bernard Tomic (Australia) 6-3 3-6 6-3

Matteo Viola (Italy) beat Marcel Granollers (Spain) 5-7 6-3 6-1

Gilles Simon (France) beat Daniel Brands (Germany) 7-6(3) 6-4

Martin Klizan (Slovakia) beat Paul-Henri Mathieu (France) 6-4 3-6 7-5

Victor Hanescu (Romania) beat Jerzy Janowicz (Poland) 7-6(4) 6-3

Igor Sijsling (Netherlands) beat 3-Jo-Wilfried Tsonga (France) 7-6(3) 4-6 6-4
 
Doha wins for Wozniacki and Ivanovic

Caroline Wozniacki and Ana Ivanovic began their Qatar Open campaigns with straight-set victories in Doha.
Wozniacki made short work of Bosnian qualifier Mervana Jugic-Salkic with a 6-1 6-2 win in a little over an hour of play.
''I just tried to focus on my own game and felt like I served well, returned well. I was happy,'' Wozniacki said.
Later in the day, Ivanovic recorded a more impressive win by seeing off 26th-ranked Austrian Tamira Paszek by the same scoreline with two breaks in each set.
''I actually expected a very tough match. We had some battles in the past, but I really started well and I was aggressive,'' Ivanovic said. ''I felt like I was doing like lot of damage with my forehand, so I tried to keep that game plan.''

Qatar Open first round results

10-Caroline Wozniacki (Denmark) beat Mervana Jugic-Salkic (Bosnia and Herzegovina) 6-1 6-2

13-Ana Ivanovic (Serbia) beat Tamira Paszek (Austria) 6-1 6-2

Caroline Garcia (France) beat Fatma Al Nabhani (Oman) 6-2 6-3

Daria Gavrilova (Russia) beat Anabel Medina Garrigues (Spain) 4-6 6-3 6-3

Anastasia Rodionova (Australia) beat Zheng Jie (China) 6-2 6-3

Mona Barthel (Germany) beat Yulia Putintseva (Kazakhstan) 6-4 6-2

Simona Halep (Romania) beat Olga Govortsova (Belarus) 6-1 6-0

Svetlana Kuznetsova (Russia) beat Bethanie Mattek-Sands (US) 7-6(1) 6-4
 
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