Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions
Bali International Convention Center
Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia
FINAL

Unfortunately Marion was forced to retire from her match with compatriot Aravane Rezai, in the final of the Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions in Bali. As a consequence Rezai claims her 2nd title of the year and Marion Bartoli Fan Blog extends congratulations to her on a fine achievement.

Match

Both players began brightly, with the French Number 1 taking a grip of the set with a break in the 5th game - a set characterised by candid, powerful, free-flowing tennis.

Serving to stay in the set at 5-3, Rezai held off one set point.

Back on serve at 6-5, Marion seemed to land awkwardly as she chased down a ball at 15-30. A medical time out followed, and once again that problematic upper quadricep was attended to. In evident discomfort, Marion tried to resume play, But double faulted on set point.

Now limping and in a state of some distress, Marion was unable to continue and retired from the match.

Evoking heartbreaking memories of the 2008 Stanford Final, a tearful Marion sat slumped in the chair prior to the prize giving ceremony.

Heartbreak

It is a tough way for Marion Bartoli to end a marvellous season, after all the hard work both she and her father have put in these past 12 months. A double blow after having narrowly lost out on a place at the lucrative Year Ending Championships in Doha in a similar manner.

Team Bartoli could be forgiven for wondering what they have to do break the top 10 having come so close on several occasions this year.

Finishing 2008 in 17th place after an illness blighted year, Marion recovered well in 2009, climbing to 11th place in the rankings by February - a figure which she has revisited on two other occasions this season. It looks like Marion will now out on a much anticipated return to the top 10, by just one place and a mere handful of points.

Support

Marion will understandably feel the sense of disappointment keenly at this time, but she can count on the support of one of the ever-present rocks of her life, coach and father Walter Bartoli. As he explained recently, "from my standpoint it’s very important to help her when something bad has happened to her, or she's injured, or she's got too much protection because she lost a match. She find me when she needs me ..I think it's not to be too expansive when she's winning a match, but to be there when she's on the wrong part of her life, and I'm here every time."

In acknowledgment of this, Marion said today "I have to thank one person - my dad. Thank you so much, daddy. My leg was hurting and I tried my best to carry on, but it was too much pain. I'm sorry I wasn't able to finish today." She also congratulated her opponent, "I'd like to congratulate Aravane on the wonderful week she had. She played some great tennis. I'd like to thank Sony Ericsson for making this tour possible, and to Commonwealth Bank for this wonderful tournament."

Progress

Hopefully after a few days, once the disappointment has subsided, Marion can look back at this exhausting yet rewarding season 2009 with a significant level of satisfaction. Breaking the top 10 of course would have been nice, but it is after all just a number. Materially all you can say about number 9, or number 10, is that it is statement of PROGRESS, and if progress be the real measure of achievement, then Marion has without question moved onward and upward. Ending the season at minimum six places higher than last season. Considering many were writing her top 20 obituary at the end of last season in their reviews and previews, as a fan I now have no hesitation in shouting from the rooftops that Marion is a good player and Marion Bartoli has proven many many people wrong.

Nine, ten, eleven, whatever, Marion has proven her point this season. Team Bartoli have made improvements in court movement and serve, while retaining the distinctive bases of the Bartoli game. And with outstanding wins over Venus Williams, twice over Jelena Jankovic, and purging herself of old foes such as Vera Zvonareva and Shahar Peer.. Marion Bartoli has made her presence felt strongly on the wonderful world of the Sony Ericsson WTA Tour. Not only this, but she has reached FOUR tour finals, winning two of them - a sad irony that it had to be in the first and last tournaments of the year that Marion came off as losing finalist.. "ruthless symmetry?".

Only Marion can say whether that little bit of added pressure and hype today caused her to commit herself just that little bit more than was advised at the end of the first set - precipitating the injury. But as blogged at the outset of this tournament, Marion has already proven all she needs to this season, and brought her fans a great deal of pleasure and satisfaction by her terrific efforts.

So, some applause for the lady. As the Governor said, "i'll be back"

Photo of disappointed Marion with runner up trophy.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

UPDATE

Marion has since shed some light on what happened (commbanktennis.com),

"I started to feel my leg was pretty tight in the middle of the set," she said. "I started to feel some pain all over my quads and I thought maybe it was the stress and no reason to be serious. But then it hurt me a lot, especially each time I had to push and put some weight onto my left leg it was really getting worse and worse and at the end I couldn’t continue.

"It was a good match and I’m very sad to finish like this. The last thing you want to do is injury yourself in the last match of the season. But what can you do? I was trying my best and perhaps it was just too much."

She will now return home, and will not pick up a racquet for the next three weeks as she allows the injury to heal.'

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Italiano / Francais

A note to visitors who use translation tools, some posts are not displaying until after a delay, sometimes of many hours.

Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions
Bali International Convention Center
Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia
SEMI FINAL

All French Affair Set Up For Bali Showdown

Marion Bartoli today reached her fourth WTA final of the year by defeating Kimiko Date-Krumm, and in doing so, set up an all French final with Aravane Rezai at the inaugural Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions in Bali.

The French number 1 secured a break to 30 in the opening game of the match, and then continued in scintillating style with three consecutive aces to send out a message in no uncertain terms that she was aiming to be the ace player on court today. Marion sealed the game and a 2-0 lead with a winner produced from her first serve.

The former top 5 ranked Date-Krumm lost another break, but immediately retrieved the break to get on the scoreboard at 3-1. However this was simply applying war paint to a battle-scarred face, as the Japanese player took just one point from the next two games for all her gallant effort.

Serving to stay in the set, the best Date-Krumm could do was apprehend Marion at deuce for a fleeting moment. But as if energised by Olympique Marseilles' 6-1 victory midweek, Marion Bartoli formed a beautiful symmetry with the ruthless arithmetic; 6-1 first set.

The 2nd set did little to alter the complexion of things as the veteran Jap's ephemeral title hopes yellowed rapidly. A 2nd set bagel looked on the cards and Marion began to fire out the aces again towards a seemingly inevitable 6-0 end. 5-0 up Marion earned a first match-point, but she was unable to convert with a forehand down the line which went wide.

Date-Krumm took this stay of execution with gratitude and glee - fighting back with skill and guts to within a point of bringing the 2nd set on serve at 5-4. However Marion held off the break point and eventually sealed the match with a 2nd match-point of the game and third match-point overall, almost half an hour after earning the first match-point. (OMG'ess..)(Bartoli)

"Until 6-1 5-1 it was absolutely perfect", said Marion, "Then Kimiko started to play really well. She was swinging freely and hitting some really great shots. It wasn’t my level going down, it was her playing too good. But I knew I just had to win one more game and that’s what I did."

Date-Krumm offered her own analysis, "I like this surface but I think she likes it more than me, and I think she likes my ball also, very flat. If I can play with more spin I think she would have more trouble, but that’s not my tennis. In the beginning I tried to hit more angles, using the backhand slice and dropshot, but her ball is very deep so it’s difficult to hit them. And I made too many mistakes, and if I didn’t hit the right angle she could attack."

It has been an infrequent occurence during the time i've been running this blog that Marion has played a player as old as I am, let alone a player three years older. So fair play to Kimiko, i'm still trying to get my head around the 'Krumm' bit, being of an age who remembers her as Kimiko Date, and with typical tennis-illiteracy at the time would have made a hazy cognitive association with another name of the era, Yayuk Bazuki.

Yours trully did however pick Kimiko to reach the semi final. So good luck to her for next season. I'm sure every tennis fan hopes that the tour enriches her life and gives her some fun and excitement over the next few years, just as her own presence has enriched the tour since coming out of retirement.

This victory positions Marion Bartoli to within one win of a top 10 return, and to within one win of a career landmark 50 wins in a season, and lastly to within one win of a third title in 2009. The opposition lain before Team Bartoli for tomorrow's deul is a certain Aravane Rezai. Marion claimed a famous even infamous victory over Rezai at the French Open in 2007, and more recently beat the Strasbourg titleholder in straight sets only last month in Tokyo. "It will be great that a Frenchwoman will win the title." observed Marion.

Marion Bartoli will deservedly start the overwhelming favorite for tomorrow's showdown, but Rezai has had a good run in Bali including a surprise upset over Sabine Lisicki. No one will be taking this casually, but if form, rank, and ability hold true, Marion will win.

Congratulations to the team on reaching yet another final. Good luck for tomorrow. With you 100%. CUMMON!!

New photos on the Slide

The evergreen Kimiko Date Krumm

Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions
Bali International Convention Center
Nusa Dua, Bali
GROUP STAGE

Following her match on Wednesday Marion told reporters that the court inside Bali convention center was fast and that it required that she make some ad hoc adjustments. Nevertheless, going by results so far it's clear that Marion has taken to this surface like a duck to water, and left her group stage opponents looking like lame duck's Shahar Peer is out, and Marion Bartoli has qualified for the semi final.

On paper the case history of this Franco-Israeli contest hasn't made easy reading for those with a Bartoli bias; the head to head stood at 1-6. But no sooner have we digested that brick when we consider the head to head against Vera Zvonareva was every bit as unpromising as the one held against Peer. Last month Marion demonstrated that fundamentally her level of play is good just now and that she is possessed with an unrelenting will to win - a lady determined to show that she is a highly credible force at the top of women's tennis. She proved it by the way she came back to beat the Top 10 ranking Russian.

As for today's match, the first break came midway through the first set in Marion's favor. Yet with all due respect to the opposition, Marion always seemed the in-control player, frequently earning break points, and swatting away the slightest wiff of threat.

5-3 up, Marion won the opening set in style with a break to love. There-after Marion was like an extra in a Mad Max movie as she went on the rampage. Of course 'we don't want another hero..' one's enough. And Peer? Left looking as hapless as, well, Peer Gynt!

The service stats today where really solid from Marion, and when it came to returning first and second serves, the number 1 French was killing it. With such a fast court Peer simply wasn't getting the time on the ball or an opportunity to hypnotise another unfortunate victim with a soporific shot-fest. Peer, dependant on percentage, just wasn't getting the stats today, with less than 50% of first serves in.

Learning From The Past

Alluding to a painful reverse in Miami this year, Marion explained, "I had to stay focused until the very end of the match. I lost too many matches in three sets against Shahar, where I led by a set and with break or double-break in the second set, and where she came from nowhere to beat me." "My groundstrokes were really strong and deep and I was not doing a lot of mistakes from the baseline, and I think my power was pretty high so I was putting a lot of pressure on her. I think it helps when you hit a lot of winners and few mistakes, usually you win the match."

To be fair to Peer, her recent reverse against Mirza in Osaka, and this one today, may be symptomatic of the tiredness and fatigue felt by players at this stage of the season. It's the same for everyone though. Overall the Israeli star can take encouragement from a great performance over the second half of this year. She's on the rise again.

Redolent of that summer 2 years ago, Marion's first win in a tournament over her old pal since Wimbledon 2007 has by happy coincidence drawn her towards the cusp of the top 10 once again. Two more wins and its job done. She'll do her best - that's her covenant!

Talkin' Up The Tennis

In a week of challenging headlines and negative publicity surrounding the sport of tennis, it is all too tempting to yield to the leaven of cynicism. But you know, whoever wins the title this weekend will have a remarkable cynicism-busting story to tell, especially true of Marion and Kimiko Date. There are a lot of good people working very hard to try to make tennis a viable, sustainable, vital, and integral fabric of our global sporting culture, (or if that sounds a bit too high fluting; simply set a positive example in life as a role-model. A few days ago Kimiko said, “I want to show to the tsunami and earthquake victims here that it's never too late to restart your life, just like what I've done.” To some that might sound like pretentious cods wallop. But at 39 years old and a former world number 4, Kimiko Date has nothing to prove to anyone. She didn't have to do this. Her partner is a racing driver, and wants not for cash. She didn't have to expose herself to potential ridicule by coming back or tarnish her legacy. But her story can inspire and catalyse people. Just as Marion's story has done. What Marion, Kimiko, and all the other hero's do has altrustic and motivational spin-offs, which sometimes gets ignored by the press clamor for the latest manky drama, and suppressed by the media hyperbole that follows.

Of course, It would be unfair and plain daft to attribute all ills to the media, because there is light and shade in that scene just as there is in all walks of life. My appeal as a fan is simply that we don't forget the good stuff about tennis, especially women's tennis. It has a lot to offer and a lot of good going for it. So chin up, keep smiling, talk up the sport.

Just indulge me a bit more sugary Eurovosion.... As the Slide song goes.. Don’t forget to look ahead.. See what you will find..

*The scoreboard stopped working just before this.

Match Statistics

Player	M  Bartoli FRA	S Peer ISR
Aces	1	1
Double Faults	2	2
1st Serve %	67%	49%
1st Serve Pts Won	72%	58%
2nd Serve Pts Won	69%	41%
Break Points Saved	2/2	5/9
Service Games Played	8	9
1st Serve Return Pts Won	42%	28%
2nd Serve Return Pts Won	59%	31%
Break Points Won	4/9	0/2
Return Games Played	9	8
Total Service Pts Won	71%	49%
Total Return Pts Won	51%	29%
Total Pts Win	60%	40%
Duration	1hr 16mins 14secs
Fan Blog Moodset

Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions
Nusa Dua, Bali
GROUP STAGE

No Dilli Dallying By Bartoli in Bali

Indoor courts can have the same variables as their outdoor equivalents, some are carpet, some are hard, some even clay following this year’s innovation at Stuttgart. Yet even among the hard indoor variety there is a multiplicity of variables in terms of speed, movement, and bounce.

One of the blog's astute visitors commented that the speed of the indoor court will be a benefit to Marion in this tournament, and if the outcome of this result is anything to go by, then this observation is right on the ball. Yet it seems even for Marion Bartoli, a veritable connoisseur of fast hard court tennis, still had to hit the ground running today. "The conditions were pretty difficult because the court is very fast and it’s not easy to get used to it." She said after the match "There is only the one court and we are 12 players so you can’t get a lot of time to practise on it. And it’s the end of the year and everyone is tired so it’s not easy."

Winning the first eight points of the match to rush into a 2-0 lead, Marion's opponent quickly levelled the score at 2-2. The tournament’s top ranking player immediately seized the initiative again for a 4-2 lead. Facing little challenge in point scoring terms, Marion retained a one break lead and served the set out confidently, 6-4.

As the match progressed, the talented young Slovakian really began to find her feet, and nothing separated either player for most of the set, but the French number 1 almost shot herself in the foot with consecutive double faults in the 7th game - she survived.

Marion's opponent served up some big shots in the next game, with aces and a double fault. Yet after returning to deuce three times, Rybarikova's battle royale ended in a surrender of a break at a highly critical juncture of the match. 5-4

The Monterrey and Stanford titleholder made no mistake as she wrapped up the contest with her first match point, winning the final game to 30 for a 6-4 6-4 scoreline.

"I’m really happy to win in two sets. I was quite happy with the level of the game. But I’m really pleased to be part of this tournament. It’s a great one to finish the year and I will really try my best to finish well."

A great pledge and a great result today from Marion. Magdalena Rybarikova has offered stiff and powerful resistance to Marion throughout their four contests, so this win can only help keep Marion's confidence high.

One thing we have learned from the results on day 1 of the Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions is the positive statement made about the competitive depth of women's tennis; Firstly, there was an upset with Marion's compatriot Aravane Rezai beating the much fancied Sabine Lisicki. Then Kimiko Date-Krumm can consider herself a little agrieved at losing the first set in a tie break (5) against the ascendant Belgian, Yanina Wickmayer. The Belgian then broke away at 3-3 in the 2nd set, but not before the much admired veteran gave the girl less than half her age something to think about. Lastly Agnes Szavay took another high flying filly Sam Stosur to three sets before the Aussie finally put the Hungie away, and so wrap up the evening’s entertainment at the Bali convention center.

Last week yours truly clumsily drew some arbitrary line between the top players in Bali and the others. But in actual fact the intrinsic set up of this tournament distinguishes it from all other tournaments except Doha YEC. The concept of this tournament forms a convincing showcase of all that's good and all that's promising in women's tennis today. That's why this tournament is arranged as a round robin mini league, instead of a pyramid model, ie; with one win and your through, or one loss and your eliminated.

Every player in Bali this week has a tangible opportunity to take home another trophy to add to the one or more they have each won this season already. This event seems to be shaping up as nice addition to the tour calendar.

Tomorrow's group match sees Peer take on Rybarikova, and Marion play next on Friday

Don't forget to check the twitter feed. Lots of interesting stuff coming through the wires today., and chack out the tournament website who have put up another gallery of excellent photos.

Match Statistics

Player	M  Bartoli FRA	M Rybarikova SVK
Aces	1	5
Double Faults	4	4
1st Serve %	58%	58%
1st Serve Pts Won	68%	64%
2nd Serve Pts Won	68%	40%
Break Points Saved	1/2	6/9
Service Games Played	10	10
1st Serve Return Pts Won	36%	32%
2nd Serve Return Pts Won	60%	32%
Break Points Won	3/9	1/2
Return Games Played	10	10
Total Service Pts Won	68%	54%
Total Return Pts Won	46%	32%
Total Pts Win	56%	44%
Duration	1hr 38mins 01secs
Fan Blog Moodset

GROUP A	GROUP B	GROUP C	GROUP D
M Bartoli FRA S Peer ISR M Rybarikova SVK	S Stsour AUS M J Martinez Sanchez ESP A Szavay HUN	Y Wickmayer BEL A Medina Garrigues ESP K Date-Krumm JPN	S Lisicki GER M Czink HUN A Rezai FRA

 

Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions
Bali International Convention Center
4-8 Nov 2009
Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia
WTA $600,000
Surface – Indoor Hard
Format – 12 player round robin (4 groups of 3 players)

FULL PREVIEW

TIGNOR'S TAKE - On his blog last month Steve Tignor recognised how Marion "Bartoli had what looked like a promising summer stolen away by Kim Clijsters, who beat her at two tournaments, one of which was the U.S. Open. Now that Clijsters is safely back at home, maybe Bartoli can pick up where she left off in Stanford."

RECOVERY – With a quarter final in Tokyo and semi final in Beijing, Marion has indeed recovered well from the Clijsters double-wammy. Even before the season has came to a close you can see from the graph below, Marion has performed better this season compared with the other seasons she has been a top 20 player. A statistic which corroborates the result of a recent blog poll about Marion’s level of play.

FATIGUE - However during her most recent tournament in Osaka she complained of having "a little tendinitis that I had already had at Stanford," explaining that, "The end of season is hard for girls who, like me, have much heavier ball. I hope to recuperate." (L'Equipe) The following day the French number 1 retired from her match with Sania Mirza, this time with a painful shoulder tendon problem.

With a whole month between the end of the US Open and the start of the Toray Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo, you may ask how Marion could feel such tiredness and fatigue? The answer is when you are a professional athlete you always have to maintain your condition, a state of readiness. Even between tournaments it is always defcon 4 with team Bartoli, and defcon 5 when noble hostilities resume. So there is never really any off-time in the literal sense.

LA BIDASSE EN BALI - Now, nearing the end of this season’s battle, the walking wounded soldiers on bravely. Hero and all that. It's therefore quite appropriate that the tennis season should end in paradise! The provincial coastal idyll of Bali has a vibrant cultural life, terrific appetite for leisure and sporting interests, and a renowned reputation for welcoming visitors from all around the world. With its gently lapping waves and beach lifestyle Bali is a suitable final tour stop for la bidasse Bartoli, but she isn't there to convalecse.. The outdoor forecast for the next five days is 32c, and the competition at the Bali Convention Center in Nusa Dua is sure to be hot come the start of the tournament on Wednesday. As for the indoor forecast; Stosur, Wickmayer, Peer, and Lisicki look to be main challengers to Marion Bartoli. However the 2006 runner up enters the reincarnated Commonwealth Bank event as the top ranked player this time, and overwhelming favorite to win the title according to blog visitors. Let's now take a look at four potential obstacles in Marion's path..

SAM STOSUR - is fresh from winning her first singles title and has enjoyed a great year, which included a semi final finish at the French Open. Upon taking the title in Osaka, Stosur beamed, “My next goal is to reach the top 10 for which I would need to play like today, every day.”

Her manager Paul Kilderry thinks, “If she can maintain that consistency I think it’s just a matter of time.” Osaka is “the culmination of a great year", reflected Kilderry. "..obviously her ranking and her level of play’s been very consistent from the start of the year and it’s a nice reward for a lot of hard work." Stosur's website,

At Stanford Marion pointed out Stosur is a player on the rise, a player with a huge serve, and a player in the running for a place in the top 10. Marion showed guts to beat Stosur that week over three sets.

After recovering from illness in 2008, Stosur is clearly hungry and motivated to realise her ambition.
HEAD TO HEAD 1-1

YANINA WICKMAYER - How can a player on the margins of the top 100 start the year so horribly with 5 consecutive defeats, then go on to win two maiden titles, enjoy a semi final finish at the US Open, and break into the top 20? Granted, the Belgian avoided all the marquee players in New York right until the semi final.

It's all the more remarkable given the lack of stability in her coaching set up. In the past 12 months Wickmayer has experimented with Dutch coach Glen Schapp, and Justine's Henin's long-time coach Carlos Rodriguez. She has also worked with former Belgian pro Ann Devries, and been a sparring partner with Flemmish friend Kim Clijsters (source; Wickmayer's website), yet according to wikipedia Wickmayer remains without a coach.

It's impressive how Wickmayer has thrived without the guidance and support of a regular coach. But if the independent way works for her, then power to her. Even if the substance underlying her sudden success is a mystery, her form can certainly be considered every bit as amazing as that shown by fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters. We monitor her progress with interest.
HEAD TO HEAD 0-0

SABINE LISICKI - Yes she will be vaunted as the glamor puss of Bali (very bored), and yes she enters the tournament by the backdoor courtesy of a wildcard, but be in no doubt the big German is serious beast in tennis terms, and totally merits the wildcard offered her. Last week she reached the final in Luxembourg. She has also reached the quarter final stage at Wimbledon, and blew away a bevvy of top names to take her maiden title in Charleston - A premier tournament at that. She beat Venus, Marion, and Wozniacki en route, her serve exceeding speeds previously set by Venus Williams. Lisicki seems a more fierce-some player now than the one I watched lose to Marion at Wimbledon last year.

Such physical commitment can be punishing on the body, "Before the US Open I injured my shoulder" she wrote last week in her Sony Ericsson WTA Tour player blog, "..there was a big question mark over whether I'd even play there, but four days before I was able to start practicing again, so I was able to go. Unfortunately I twisted my ankle during my match there, and then I got food poisoning in China a few weeks ago too. But I'm a fighter and I never let those things break me down."
HEAD TO HEAD 1-1

SHAHAR PEER - Not considered a top contender to take the title in Bali, but a player from our perspective who always hassles Marion, and preferably one to be avoided in the group stage. She has great stamina, will dig deep no matter the score-line, and hang in there waiting for her opponent to finally crack, fall, and wail before the wall - the counterpuncher - A percentage and error inducing player. Trouble.. in the nicest posible sense.

Recalling the diplomatic incident that arose earlier this year, Peer told the Jerusalem Post of her relief to receive a visa this time, "I'm happy this issue has been settled and that I can play in Bali, "I'm looking forward to this event and I'm especially pleased with the fact that the Dubai scandal did not repeat itself." Although predominantly Hindu, Bali is a small province within the much larger and generally benign Islamic country of Indonesia.

Since the fall-out from said "scandal" subsided, Peer has finally been able to focus on her tennis and move up the rankings a bit. The former world number 17 has still a bit of ground to make up to get to the ranking she had in 2007 and 2006, but with back to back titles in Guangzhou and Tashkent she has every right to feel she can do well here and go all the way. Her recent form is certainly suggestive of dark horse material at the very least, or Trojan horse were Bartolian ambitions are concerned. Real threat.
HEAD TO HEAD 1-6

THE PELETON - Turning to the other players playing Bali, the two Spaniard's Anabel Medina Garrigues and Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez will firstly be pleased simply to have qualified for this great event. However both players typically play their best tennis on clay and look outsiders for the title. Magdalena Rybarikova has long maintained that she plays her best tennis on grass, she proved this In June by winning Birmingham and thus qualify for Bali. Aravane Rezai qualifies virtue of her unexpected win in Strasbourg and recently lost in straight sets to Marion in Tokyo. Melinda Czink and Agnes Szavay lead a surprise and very welcome Magyar contingent in Bali. On the cusp of the top 10 just over a year ago, Szavay has shown signs of apprehending her calamitous ranking reversal, while Czink is enjoying the best season of her long and winding career, including a debut title in Quebec.

KIMIKO DATE-KRUMM - is the last card in the pack, the 39 year old Japanese ace recently returned to professional tennis after an absence of 12 years, and became 2nd oldest player in tour history to win a title when she took the Hansol Open in Korea. "Maybe some people think it's too crazy, but I'm enjoying a lot," Date Krumm said during the LA Women's Tennis Championships. "For me it's not only for the ranking or always to win the tournament. It's just to enjoy life. Before when I play, after losing it was like everything finished. Now I have more wide views."

Not only is Date-Krumm the player who has held the highest rank of all assembled players in Bali (No.4 1996), but more recently gave US Open finalist Caroline Wozniacki a torrid time at Wimbledon before finally going down in three sets, also narrowly losing to Lisicki in a close three setter in LA. She has stood up well against two of the biggest draws in women’s tennis today.

Date-Krumm doesn't do brutal cannon-power tennis, her dying craft is more that of a swords-woman, with net surges and forehand jabs, it's tactile tennis, and by this she will win, she will lose, she will live, she will die. That's her game. Her 'classic' forehand technique is a point of curiosity for some.

"Everybody hits harder, more powerful, more speedy," she said. "A long time ago, in my generation, everybody was using more the head and more the tactics, and tennis I think was more interesting to watch and play. Now everybody says my style is old style, but I don't care. It's working so I don't care." It's the kind of commendable individualism and defiance which has also characterised team Bartoli over the years. So fans of Marion can easily find grounds of affinity and respect for the way Date-Krumm is doing things on her own terms, and why not.

Date-Krumm is rank outsider to lift the tournament, but will be the sentimental favorite in Bali for sure. She's my pick for a semi final place.

PRIDE – So to wrap things up, whatever the outcome of this tournament Marion Bartoli Fan Blog has PRIDE in the terrific effort and results Marion Bartoli has submitted this year. To be in with a chance of returning to the Top 10 after the Clijsters rumble and "catastrophic" spring hard court season is just marvellous. She is strong in 2009, and if fit this coming week, has the arsenal to deal with all her opponents and be crowned champion of champions.

CELEBRATE - Bali is of course a great place to celebrate spirituality, with its fine temples, and veneration of the gods and goddesses. Let’s look forward to our very own goddess having something to celebrate next week. Let’s do this Marion. I believe in you.

     Marion Bartoli 2006 Bali runner up, and Svetlana Kuznetsova winner

Vera Dushevina is the reserve player
*Bidasse means soldier

Some of you may recall around this time last year a storm erupted between the French Tennis Federation and team Bartoli. The reason; The Federation's decision to replace Marion Bartoli as the national number 1, in contradiction to the WTA Tour rankings. The decision was viewed among Bartoli fans as a deliberate snub by (outgoing) elements within the Federation.

This year has ushered a new regime at Federation headquarters, and a welcome change to the elite ranking system. The Federation has sensibly decided to synchronise domestic ranking with the rhythm of the WTA Tour calendar. Instead of being decided in September like last year, elite national ranking will be announced in December this year.

Translated into English, the statement on the Federation website explains,

The ranking.. in 2010 has been validated by the Federal Bureau on 9 October. Until the first five positions are adopted on 4 December.

A little patience.. If we know the identity of the club members of five of the first set, we do not yet know their exact rank. Since this new sports season 2010, the hierarchy of top five players will be determined at the end of the international season ..Thus the ranking French and world rankings coincide perfectly.

It is known that the top five will consist of alphabetically ..Marion Bartoli, Alize Cornet, Amélie Mauresmo, Virginie Razzano and Aravane Rezai. It (just) remains to know the order.

The French press now universally refer to Marion Bartoli as the French Number 1.

The Federation's ranking designation may largely be of symbolic value, but symbols can be powerful gestures, and we watch with interest for the announcement due in December. Even if for example Aravane Rezai wins Bali, it is inconcievable that the Federation could reach any other decision than to select Marion Bartoli as national number 1, on the basis of the year as a whole, and on the basis of being the player most likely to spearhead the challenge of the French on the professional tour in 2010.

Bartoli tough as old boots.. a shoo in for the national number 1 spot

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Recent Blog Polls

Poll No.5, 27 Oct - Nov 3

Q. Which player will be champion in Bali? 61 votes were cast as follows

Bartoli 46 VOTES 75%
Lisicki 4 VOTES 7%
Stosur 3 VOTES 5%
Wickmayer 3 VOTES 5%
Date-Krumm 1 VOTE 2%
Medina-Garrigues 1 VOTE 2%
Martinez Sanchez 1 VOTE 2%
Peer 1 VOTE 2%
Rybarikova 1 VOTE 2%
Czink 0 VOTES 0%
Szavay 0 VOTES 0%
Rezai 0 VOTES 0%

(Result of Poll No.4 - 19-26 Oct)

Will Marion Bartoli win the Commonwealth Bank Tournament Of Champions In Bali?

27 VOTES 82% YES
6 VOTES 18% NO

In future, the previous week's poll will be placed within a new post, and allowed to drop down the blog. Each poll will be accessible by a menu link soon.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

(Result of Poll No.3 - 12-19 Oct)

High Approval Rating For Team Bartoli

39 VOTES - (89%) – Marion’s level of play is higher in 2009 than in 2007
5 VOTES - (11%) – Marion’s level of play is lower in 2009 than in 2007

Well, ok, with just 44 votes, that headline is pushing it a bit I know.. But nevertheless you clearly feel Marion’s level of play this year has been consistently higher than in her Wimbledon final year. The outcome of this poll can not only be considered an endorsement of Marion the player, but also of her coach and father Walter. He has guided her through a radical new service motion and a newfound freedom of movement around court.

"I'm more experienced since that Wimbledon final”, said Marion recently, "I've grown a lot and know what to do on big points. I've improved my movement a lot”.

As for her serve she say's, "I can push off the ground harder. I've worked on being able to serve with my legs for two years. I wasn't able to do that before."

Marion hasn’t made a grand slam final appearance this year, but she has won two titles and reached the final of another, achieved a quarter final at the Australian Open and a shed-load of good wins over the course of 2009. Marion Bartoli has shown she is tough as old boots and has refused to be washed away like some watery one hit wonder. Today Marion has risen to No.11 in singles and over the past four years stamped her name firmly upon the top 20 leader-board. She has dug her heels in and said I am here to stay, and is hot on the heels of a top 10 return.

I’m sure wherever you are, you will be getting right behind Marion during Bali. It’s conceivable she could finish the season by returning to the top 10, and if that happens, man, it would be richly deserved.