Mesh Tennis

Jaslyn Hewitt could easily kick my ass, but that won’t stop my little hate parade for her brother, Lleyton. Apparently his sister is making news now after doing some body building and modeling.

SHE’s shed the tennis gear and sandshoes and unleashed the stylish sex bomb within - meet the new-look Jaslyn Hewitt.

With her profile on the rise this year through body building, the super-fit 24-year-old recently decided to invest in some publicity shots.

The first step was to transform the shy tennis coach into a raunchy fashion model.
Hewitt said she was thrilled with the final product, and may even use the photos to get modelling work.

“It felt strange at first because I’m not a model, but I gradually felt more comfortable in front of the camera,'’ she said.

“I’ve never done anything like this before, but it’s just good to have publicity shots on hand.

“I’m going to make a comp card out of the shots and if I get modelling work then great, but if not, it’s no biggie.

“I also just wanted to have some photos of myself when I was that fit because you don’t know how long you are going to keep it. Plus it was fun.'’

While she’s lived most of her life in the shadow of her famous brother Lleyton, Hewitt has forged her own path in recent months through body building.

She recently competed in the women’s novice figure category of the SA Natural Physique Titles and came second. Perth Now

Richard Gasquet is also in danger of being out of top form for the upcoming Australian Open due to a knee injury.

Richard Gasquet withdrew yesterday from the Adelaide International, leaving the tournament without a representative from the men’s tour top 20.

Frenchman Gasquet, 21, was expected to be the main obstacle to world No. 21 Lleyton Hewitt’s goal of winning the last ATP tournament to be held in his home state.

However, Gasquet’s exit because of a knee injury will delay his return to competitive play in the new year.

It leaves a weakened field in Adelaide that gives Hewitt an excellent chance of winning the event he first claimed at 16 in 1998, when ranked 550 in the world.

Gasquet’s withdrawal has opened up a spot in the field for French doubles specialist Michael Llodra. Herald Sun

I have no doubt that Hewitt can easily win this tournament.

Jelena Dokic is yet another player who seems unable to catch a break - but she at least still has a chance to play the Australian Open with a wild card, despite her thigh injury.

The Serb-born Australian had to quit during a quarter-final in the Open wild card play-off after aggravating a left thigh injury. Dokic could not go on against teenaged Olivia Rogowska.

“We’re very disappointed for her, we have seen her working hard on her comeback in recent months and saw her making some good progress in winning three matches in the play-off,” said Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley. Bangkok Post

It is going to be tough for her to get into winning form before the AO.

Wow. I can’t stand this guy - I didn’t really think that was possible for Hewitt to be so irritating. Besides, wasn’t his trademark really making racist commentary about black umpires and James Blake? No? Could have fooled me.

Lleyton Hewitt is trademarking his “C’mon” celebration and is going into business. On the eve of his thrust at an elusive Australian Open title, Hewitt and his management have developed a logo representing the hand signal and traditional affirmation seen on the tennis courts of the world for the past decade, and expect to see it bob up on a clothing range before too long. Hewitt’s Melbourne-based manager, David Drysdale, confirmed yesterday that the logo had been submitted for trademarking. “I think it’s good that he has his own brand and that (the c’mon) is the one thing that’s most synonymous with him,” Drysdale told Sporting Life. Little Lleyton told Australian Tennis magazine recently that he had been considering the idea for a while. “It’s funny — I walk down the street and everybody says ‘C’mon.’ They copy me for doing my signal. I’m not quite sure how to describe that signal, there’s no real word for it. So we’ve trademarked ‘C’mon.’ We’re going to try and push that as much as possible as my brand, and get it out there in the marketplace, make shirts for kids, golf shirts and different kinds of stuff like cargo shorts.” The Age

Talk about a full time return - Davenport is only hesitant about playing the French Open, but plans a full schedule for the rest f the year. I hope to see her again at Indian Wells!

“I just didn’t think athletically I’d be able to rebound as well as I have,” Davenport said. “My body has felt really great the last six months.

“I was really excited to come back and play but also really nervous about still being able to do well and having the comeback be a success. But, yeah, I never have thought that it would have gone as well as it has so far.”

Davenport has already been named by Zina Garrison in the US Fed Cup squad for their home quarter final tie against Germany in February, which could lead to selection for the US Olympic team. Davenport won the gold medal in the singles competition at the Atlanta Olympics in 1996.

The 31-year-old, who won three Grand Slam titles between 1998 and 2000, said that she intended to enter Wimbledon and the US Open as well as the Australian Open but was yet to decide about playing in the French Open on her least favourite clay. Yahoo.com

Celeb hotspot owner and “Big Brother” winner Mike “Boogie” Malin knows a little something about being under a roof … but through a roof? Well, that happened last Friday!

TMZ has learned that Mike and buddy Jennifer Capriati (yes, that Jennifer Capriati) went to the Van Halen concert last week. After the show, the two headed back to Les Deux — which Malin co-owns. We’re told Malin went onto the roof to adjust some Christmas decorations when he misstepped — and his leg went through a skylight. Jump! We’re told he did not fall all the way through, and the two were laughing hysterically about the incident. Jennifer apparently “rescued” him by pulling him back onto the roof … using her strong backhand!

The next day, we’re told Malin went to the doc to get his bum knee checked out. EaterLA, who first broke the story, reports Malin’s doing fine — he’s just a little sore.

As to whether it’s a love match with Capriati … we hear the two are simply “hanging out.” Love! TMZ.com

France has told Marion Bartoli that she must play the Fed Cup in February in order to go on to compete for the country in the upcoming Summer Olympics. Bartoli did not play the Fed Cup last year for France and apparently has no plans to play in the 2008 season either.

With her call-up to the team looming, Bartoli, who sprang a surprise by reaching the Wimbledon final against Justine Henin last summer, has said that travelling to China straight after next month’s Australian Open does not fit in with her plans.

But tennis officials are standing firm with Bartoli’s chance of competing in the games hingeing on her decision.

Amelie Mauresmo, who had a dreadful 2007 after appendix surgery, has said she won’t go either. But the former Wimbledon champion has already qualified for the Olympic team by playing Fed Cup last season. Bangkok Post

Russian tennis star Anna Chakvetadze was tied up by masked robbers who broke into her home Tuesday and stole money and goods worth hundreds of thousands of dollars, her father said.

Six assailants approached the home outside Moscow before dawn, tied up a maid in another building and forced her to hand over a remote control enabling them to enter the house through the garage, Dzhamal Chakvetadze told NTV television.

“They started to beat me, and I resisted. They hit me over the head with, I think, a pistol butt. It was dark,” he said, taking off his cap to show his bruised scalp. “They took out a pistol and told me my child was at home — reminded me — and they told me to hand everything over. I did.”

Police and Russia tennis coach Shamil Tarpishchev said the assailants tied up Chakvetadze and her parents, the ITAR-Tass news agency reported. Tarpishchev said the 20-year-old player, ranked No. 6, “tried to resist but it was useless,” ITAR-Tass reported.

NTV said the robbers took about $106,000 in cash, as well as jewelry and other goods worth about $200,000.

Phone calls to Moscow region police were not immediately returned. MSNBC

I haven’t posted a grunting complaint in awhile, and it seems about the right time for people to be bringing it up again.

Former Wimbledon finalist Judy Dalton says the time has come to put an end to a blight on tennis — the grunt.

Dalton, the winner of nine grand slam doubles titles, claims she would have been prepared to forfeit a match against the grunter par excellence, Maria Sharapova — and has urged the current generation of tennis players to do so.

“If that was me and I was playing Sharapova, I would be saying, ‘If you continue with that you can have the match, I’ll walk off, and I’ll lodge a complaint,’ ” Dalton told The Age.

“The other girls should say ‘Fine, I’ll forfeit the match.’ ” She nominated the Williams sisters, Venus and Serena, as two of the other main grunt offenders. “Will it happen? I don’t think so,” she said.

Action against the grunt has been rare. Among the exceptions was the 2003 Wimbledon warm-up event at Birmingham, when Sharapova was warned by officials after her opponent, Nathalie Dechy — and players on an adjacent court — complained about the noise. The Age

I can understand complaining if you are 5 courts away and need earplugs - but I don’t think it makes sense to forfeit a match. Maria is a player to beat, and getting a chance to win is probably worth the hearing damage.

Mark is planning for more knee surgery and now has no plans to be playing any pro tennis anytime soon.

“I am bitterly disappointed because I really wanted to play in Australia this summer,” Philippoussis said. “They tell me it can be fixed. My initial reaction is I want to get the surgery done and then work on getting back on the court as soon as I can.”

Philippoussis has had three knee operations, most recently in January. Recuperation from that surgery kept him out of the entire 2007 ATP season and he had only returned in the hope of gaining an Australian Open start. IHT

This surgery will attempt to fix damaged cartilage. It seems like reviving his career can’t get more difficult for Mark. I’m expecting that retirement is likely for him in about a year - but I’ll leave open some hope that this surgery can help him.