Serena Williams vs Elena Dementieva 4-6 4-6


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Serena Williams Battles Dementieva for Pam Shriver’s Charity Event
All-Star-Player Showdown

BALTIMORE, MD -- Olympic Women's Tennis Singles Gold Medalist, Elena
Dementieva, will compete head-to-head against world's No. 1, Serena Williams,
at the PNC Tennis Classic presented by The Baltimore Sun, it was announced by
Tournament Chairman and Founder, Pam Shriver.

Dementieva, currently ranked No. 4 in the world, will play in the Tennis
Classic Feature Singles match in a "Battle of Olympic Gold Medal Champions"
against Williams who teamed with sister Venus to capture the 2008 Olympic
Women's Tennis Doubles Gold Medal in Beijing.

The 23rd annual Pam Shriver Charity Tennis Classic will be held at 7 p.m.
Friday, Nov. 21, at Baltimore's 1st Mariner Arena for the benefit of the
Baltimore Community Foundation (BCF).

Net proceeds from the Tennis Classic are distributed to children's charities
under the guidance of the BCF.  Since 1986, over $4 million has been raised
and distributed to many of the area's needy non-profits.

Dementieva, already with two 2008 Sony Ericsson WTA Tour titles, boasts an
impressive 46-13 record, including two narrow losses in the semifinals at
both Wimbledon and this year's US Open.

She has been one of the steadiest and most productive players on the Tour
amassing over $10 million in career earnings while consistently ranking in
the world's Top Ten in the last five years.

In 2004, she barely missed winning her first Grand Slam major with close
defeats in the finals at Roland Garros and Flushing Meadows.

Along with capturing the 2008 Olympic Tennis Gold Medal in Beijing, she also
earned an Olympic Tennis Silver Medal at the 2000 Games in Sydney.

Tickets are on sale now though all Ticketmaster outlets including the 1st
Mariner Arena, or by calling Ticketmaster Phonecharge at 410-547-SEAT (7328).

Sponsorship and ticket information can be obtained by calling the Tournament
Office at [phone] or via the web at www.pnctennisclassic.org

The PNC Tennis Classic presented by The Baltimore Sun is played to benefit
the Baltimore Community Foundation (BCF).

Proceeds from the PNC Tennis Classic are received by the Tennis Classic Fund,
one of more than 500 charitable funds administered by BCF.

BCF raises, manages and distributes funds for charitable purposes in the
Greater Baltimore region.

With assets of $194 million, BCF distributed $30 million in 2007 to hundreds
of nonprofit organizations in the Baltimore region and beyond. BCF invites
donors to Invest in Baltimore through its civic agenda, which combines
economic development with poverty reduction by making strategic investments
in the areas of human services, youth, education, transportation,
neighborhoods, diversity, environment, arts and culture, and promoting
Baltimore.

The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (www.pnc.com) is one of the nation's
largest diversified financial services organizations providing consumer and
business banking; specialized services for corporations and government
entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and asset-based
lending; wealth management; asset management and global fund services.


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Once again, stars come out for Shriver charity event

By Bill Ordine | [e-mail]
November 20, 2008
In Beijing, Serena Williams and Elena Dementieva dueled in the Olympic
women's singles quarterfinals with a gold medal at stake. Tomorrow at 1st
Mariner Arena, Williams will once again be thundering blazing serves and
Dementieva answering with wicked forehands.

In China, Dementieva won that quarterfinals match and ultimately the gold
medal, and Williams and her sister, Venus, won gold in women's doubles.

When Williams and Dementieva play this time, though, the winners will be the
young people served by the local charities that benefit from the proceeds of
the PNC Tennis Classic, an annual charity event led by former Baltimore
County resident and tennis pro Pam Shriver and presented by The Baltimore Sun.

The Williams-Dementieva exhibition match is the centerpiece attraction of a
tennis card that will also feature Orioles Adam Jones and Garrett Olson in a
doubles match. Jones will be paired with Williams and Olson with Dementieva.

Ravens players are expected to provide sideline coaching help.

Marc Kantrowitz, managing director of the event, said ticket sales are ahead
of last year's pace. Organizers had hoped that Williams might draw a sellout,
but Kantrowitz said they will probably fall short. "I think we're being
slightly impacted by the economy," he said. Last year's event drew 6,500.
Kantrowitz said he'd be happy with 10,000 this year.

Williams was in Africa this month working on her own charitable pursuits,
including opening a secondary school in rural Kenya that bears her name.

"I think those who are blessed are being given an opportunity, and if you are
fortunate in that way, you owe it to give back," Williams said in Africa. "To
those whom much is given, much is expected."

Dementieva said that when Shriver called to ask her to play in the
exhibition, she couldn't refuse.

"What Pam does is a great thing and I was happy to take part," the Russian
Olympic gold medalist said. "And I get to play against Serena.
of the most athletic players in the world, and she's always fun to watch."

Shriver said this year's pairing of two women ranked among the top five in
the world should be particularly attractive. Williams is ranked No. 2 on the
WTA Tour and Dementieva is No. 4. Other matches will include top
international juniors.

"When I first started playing as a pro and never having a chance to play in
my hometown, it sort of felt like there was a void," said Shriver, who lives
in Southern California.

She saw an answer to that in the charity event she started in 1986. More than
two decades later, the event has raised about $4 million.

Proceeds are donated by the Baltimore Community Foundation to various
charities with an emphasis on children, including the Cystic Fibrosis
Foundation, Living Classroom Foundation, Maryland Special Olympics and
Baltimore Tennis Patrons.

"To me, it just seemed the perfect way to blend the things I care about,"
Shriver said, "tennis, community and charity."



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S. Williams to play in Baltimore tournament
Shriver devotes 23 years, brings top names to hometown classic
By Don Markus
September 8, 2008

As a promising 12-year-old, Serena Williams tagged along with her big sister
Venus for Pam Shriver's annual charity tennis tournament in Baltimore in 1993
to play doubles against a pair of brothers, Cal and Bill Ripken.

At the time, the buzz about the Williams sisters was barely noticeable except
for a piece on 60 Minutes about the tennis phenoms from Compton, Calif., and
their controversial father, Richard Williams.

"They were kind of playing some charity exhibition events; they weren't
playing in tournaments," Shriver recalled last week. "As it turns out,
Richard was choreographing one of the great stories in sports history. We
didn't have to do much to have them to come."

This year, the younger of the now-famous Williams sisters will be coming back
to Shriver's tournament as the headliner.

Shriver will announce today that Serena Williams will be playing in this
year's PNC Tennis Classic, at 1stMariner Arena on Nov.21. The rest of the
field will be announced later.

"We are thrilled that Serena has made playing in Baltimore part of her
year-end plans," Shriver said in a statement. "To be showcasing the talents
of one of the greatest tennis players of all time is like a dream come true."

The event, which has raised more than $4million for charity, is going into
its 23rd year and remains important to Shriver, who grew up in Baltimore and
went on to be one of the top female players in the world in a nearly 20-year
career.

"With all the changes in my life, not having my regular base in Baltimore,
three kids 4 and under, it's been one of the constants in my life over the
past 23 years," said Shriver, who now lives in Los Angeles. "It's important
to me from a position of being a stakeholder in this community. ... It's
taken the right mix of charities, title sponsors."

It has also taken a steady diet of big-name players. Shriver, as a result of
her popularity and success while playing on the women's tour, has attracted
some of the biggest stars in the sport, including former doubles partner
Martina Navratilova, Chris Evert, Monica Seles and Andy Roddick.

The year the Williams sisters first came, Jimmy Connors played Jim Courier in
the main event. Shriver recalled hosting the Williams sisters at her home in
Lutherville the weekend before the 1993 event and practicing with them at
Greenspring Tennis Club.

Though Venus Williams was getting most of the attention at the time, Serena's
talent showed.

"I couldn't believe how hard she hit the ball," Shriver said. "We were
playing on the indoor court. I could remember a couple of balls hitting the
back screen on the fly, thinking, 'Oh, my gosh, you'd better learn to control
this a bit.'"

Serena Williams has gone on to win 32singles titles and nine major
championships, most recently the U.S. Open final last night in New York. She
also recently won her second Olympic gold medal, teaming with her sister to
win in Beijing.

"Serena is an icon on and off the court that transcends the world of sports,"
Shriver said of the former No.1-ranked player. "The fans of Baltimore should
expect a great show, and hosting the event on a Friday night will only help
to enhance the excitement."


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作者: VWilliams (VStarr) 看板: Williams
標題: Re: [小威] 表演賽訊息
時間: Sat Nov 22 17:19:55 2008



11/21 PNC Tennis Classic

由Pam Shriver主辦 在Baltimore的表演賽 (髮膠明星夢的地點:p)
小威第一次參加這個比賽的時候
是在1993年跟大威一起出席 (兩人當時都還沒轉職業)

有去看現場的球迷說小威仍然有傷
不怎麼跑也盡量不把重心放在左腳
第二盤4-0領先後連丟六局 4-6 4-6

稍後的雙打比分我還沒找到


照片在這邊  http://simplyserenawilliams.blogspot.com/


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推 tim2502:Good morning Baltimore
→ VWilliams:I can hear the bell~~~
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作者: VWilliams (VStarr) 看板: Williams
標題: Re: [小威] 表演賽訊息
時間: Sun Nov 23 09:46:41 2008



球迷的觀賽心得


I went to the Exho as well and the first match was between Gail Brodsky/Ryan
Lipman and Alja Tomljanovic/Chase Buchanan... Tomljanovic Buchanan won 8-7 in
a proset which i had always played a tiebreak at 8 all (there were alot of
mistakes on the scoreboard and with the chair umpire calling the wrong score)
but o well... And as for the people saying Alja was really bad, i completely
disagree, she was rallying right with Brodsky and was hitting some pretty big
winners off her backhand and was impressive for only being 15. The only thing
Gail was better at was serving.

Than in the Serena/Elena Match, Serena came out and just spun serves in and
lost the first two games. But than she started to actually try a bit in the
next few and went up 3-2. Than a few points later Elena hit a lob and Serena
attempted to run back for it and almost went over on her ankle and fell onto
the court. (The whole match, something on the court was sticking to her shoes
and she continuously tried to get it off by hitting them with her racquet and
wiping it off with a towel.) Serena did have 0-40 to go up 4-2 in the first
but made like 4 straight errors.. The than got broken at 4-4 and proceded to
lose the first set when Elena served it out at love... In the second, Serena
Went up a double break pretty quickly cuz she looked like she was putting a
little more effort in.. But once she lost one of the breaks and got down on
her other service game, she than looked like she was hurt and starting
halfassing it again... Elena tried to prolong the match as well, hitting
balls that were going to go into the stands back to Serena so that she could
win the point. And Serena did have a few BP's to get back to 5-5 but she
wouldnt run for balls that were like 3 feet from the sidelines so Elena saved
them and eventually Serena just slamed a return in the the seats and Elena
won 6-4 6-4.

Serena Looked very good in person, she was slim and toned... All in all, it
was entertaining but i dont know if they were both putting their maximum
effort into it because ive only Seen Serena in exhibitions...

----

Serena was definitely still injured, as she could barely move or push off of
her left ankle. The match would have been more one-sided had Elena played her
hardest, but it was just an exhibition. Serena was up 4-0 in the second, but
she seemed to stop trying after she gave up one of the breaks. Still a lot of
credit to her for showing up and doing her part for charity. Get well soon
Ree!

The doubles was a joke, with Serena and Elena each paired with a pro baseball
player, so I'm not even sure what the score was. Before the match there was
an 8 game pro-set featuring some juniors playing doubles. It was Gail Bordsky
and Ryan Lipman vs. Ajla Tolmjankovic and Chase Buchanan. I thought Brodsky
was pretty impressive, but Ajla was pretty bad, at least tonight.

Regarding the tone of the Serena/Dementieva match, Elena seemed to be taking
it more seriously, running down more shots and grunting. Serena really
couldn't run, and she was hitting quite a few slices. She seemed to be at
least trying to play decently until about 4-2 in the second, but I don't
think she wanted it to go to three. I really don't think she ever would have
played under any other circumstances, but she commited to this a long time
ago, and as I said before, I give her props for even showing up when she was
clearly not at 100 percent. Both women were very gracious after the match,
though, and they seemed to be having a lot of fun in the doubles. Isha and
Lyn were there too, thank God, because I love them.



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作者: VWilliams (VStarr) 看板: Williams
標題: Re: [小威] 表演賽訊息
時間: Sun Nov 23 09:47:44 2008



新聞

PNC shows lighter side
Dementieva tops S. Williams in exhibition; stars play to 1st Mariner Arena
crowd

Early in the the first set of the 23rd PNC Tennis Classic last night, the
sport's megastar, Serena Williams, had a ball bounce off her head from a
ricochet off the baseline wall. The world's No.1 player flashed a smile after
briefly feigning dizziness, and the fans laughed with her.

It was that kind of night at 1st Mariner Arena, with Williams and her
opponent, Elena Dementieva, putting on a polite exhibition for an adoring
crowd that welcomed the opportunity to be in the presence of a superstar
while at the same time contributing to a worthy cause.

"We're here to have fun," Williams said before the match. "We're not going to
take it Grand Slam final serious, but at the same time, we want to give the
people a great show."

Judging by the loud response from the crowd throughout the evening, Williams
gave the people exactly that, despite losing the match, 6-4, 6-4.

If last year's event featuring tennis' clown prince Andy Roddick was a
yuk-fest, then this year's event, which raised $150,000 for the Baltimore
Community Foundation, was a love-fest.

Throughout the evening, Williams, who made her debut here 15 years ago as a
10-year-old playing doubles with her sister Venus against the Ripken
brothers, traded ground strokes with her opponent while the crowd showed its
support between points. Dementieva, clad in a pink one-piece and sporting the
trademark long, blond ponytail that is a favorite among Russian players, was
happy to play along.

Occasionally, each player would uncork a blistering forehand down the line to
the delight of the crowd. The shots served as a reminder that, although the
players were clearly treating this as an exhibition, there was a reason
people came out to see them.

"Baltimore is not a tennis destination, so it's a great opportunity for
people here to come and watch two great tennis players," Dememtieva said.
"I'm proud to be a part of it."

This was the first time the event has managed to attract two top-four
players. Of course, Williams transcends tennis - and sports, for that matter
- and she was clearly the main attraction for the announced crowd of 7,231.

But there was plenty of love to go around.

Before their match, Williams and Dementieva stood by as Mayor Sheila Dixon,
cheered on by the crowd as the arena speakers played the song, "Oh Sheila,"
presented tournament host Pam Shriver with a key to the city, recognizing
Shriver's efforts over the past 23 years to give back to the area she grew up
in.

"We realized that Pam had received citations from various mayors but never
the key to the city," said Dixon, who offered up the ceremonial first serve.

The crowd also went crazy for Orioles Garrett Olsen and Adam Jones, who
teamed with Williams and Dementieva in a doubles match.





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