(20) Maria Kirilenko vs. Severine Bremond
Women's Singles: Second Round
Court 8

Severine Bremond entered Wimbledon as a soon-to-be 27-year-old journeywoman who needed to grind through three rounds of qualifying just to reach the main draw. She exited as the tournament's unlikely Cinderella story, having scored tightly contested upset victories over Patty Schnyder, Gisela Dulko, and Ai Sugiyama en route to the quarterfinals. The married Frenchwoman's Grand Slam success continued here on Monday, as she thumped Stephanie Dubois in a well-attended, one-sided first round match. Next up for Bremond: Maria Sharapova's same-named pal Maria Kirilenko, the 2002 US Open juniors champion.

Despite having lost six of her last seven matches coming into the Open, Kirilenko sprinted to a 4-1 lead in the opening set. Bremond then left the court to have a left thigh injury attended to by the trainer. Fighting the elements on an overcast day that was downright chilly by US Open standards, Kirilenko pulled a long-sleeved top over her ruffle-tinged Stella McCartney tennis dress and waited out the delay.

Bremond returned, but looked less than 100% as she failed to put returns in play on the first three points of the resumption. Kirilenko held at love for a 5-1 lead. Bremond kept the set alive by holding to 2-5, then lay prone on the court as the trainer did some further stretching work. Set point came quickly and ended on an undisputed overrule, with Bremond accepting that her forehand had landed wide. Opening set to the Russian, 6-2.

More likely to construct a point cerebrally than blow anyone away with pure power, Kirilenko has drawn comparisons to Martina Hingis. In fact, it was Bremond hitting the ball harder and holding serve more comfortably in the early stages of the second set. Yet it was the steady youngster who struck first blood, breaking Bremond at love in an error-strewn seventh game.

Bremond slapped a nice one-handed backhand winner to earn a break point of her own in the following game, but Kirilenko kept her at bay, surviving two deuces to hold for 5-3. That sapped the last of Bremond's determination and she went quietly, broken at 15 to fall by a final score of 6-2, 6-3. Not a spectacular performance by Kirilenko, but a nice scalp for her to collect at the tail end of a fallow summer.

Jarmila Gajdosova vs. Viktoriya Kutuzova
Women's Singles: Second Round
Court 12

With all the hand-wringing being done over the future of American's tennis, the efforts (stymied thus far) of young Ukrainian power hitter Viktoriya Kutuzova to attain U.S. citizenship bear watching. Meanwhile, the situation is even more dire in Australia, since geriatric Nicole Pratt is one of only two Aussie women ranked higher than 180th on the WTA computer. Much as the USTA would do well to get Kutuzova under its banner, Tennis Australia is reportedly licking its chops over the prospects of naturalizing Jarmila Gajdosova, a promising 19-year-old from Slovakia. Gajdosova had a pair of very vocal chaps from the land Down Under (including Sydney-based coach Simon Walsh) cheering her on as she dueled Kutuzova for a coveted spot in the third round.

Just a week before the Open, Gajdosova twisted her ankle at a tournament in New Haven and was seen hobbling around on crutches. She healed in time for the year's last major, though, and looked sharp in the early going against Kutuzova. Gajdosova smacked a winning forehand return to break for a 5-3 lead in the first set. She followed up with an ace in Game 9 and flicked a nifty, angled backhand to take the set 6-3.

Upset over two line calls (pleading "there is no chance!" after a double fault), Gajdosova surrendered an early break to trail 0-2 in the second set. Kutuzova had problems of her own -- particularly the wind, which played havoc with Vika's ball toss and contributed to one comical second serve landing in the middle of her own service box. Gajdosova broke back for 1-2, but let her focus wander again in Game 4. Jarka pointed to a mark in the course of disputing another call and later made a clumsy attempt to toss her racquet (bouncing it off her own foot and sending it flying). When she was finally broken after four deuces, a sullen Gajdosova tried to whack the second ball over the net...and whiffed.

Gajdosova continued to get lots of encouragement from her entourage, who tried to settle her down with Aussie-accented words of optimism after virtually every point. (Preaching positivity in a way non-specific enough to avoid a reprimand for coaching seems to be Walsh's m.o. He kept up the same kind of running monologue while talking former pupil Tatiana Perebiynis through a first round win at the Open three years ago.) Gajdosova was still in a mood -- rolling her eyes over a non-call on the baseline -- but more wayward serving by the Ukrainian contributed to yet another break, getting the set back on serve at 3-2 Kutuzova.

The next handful of games went with serve. Kutuzova was decidedly back on track, even rifling a pair of aces in a hold for 5-4. But she was still outnumbered in the stands, where some Gajdosova fans had taken to banging thundersticks and chanting "let's go, Jarka, let's go!" Gajdosova held to 5-5 and pumped her fist after a winning pass got her a huge break point opportunity in Game 11. The hard-hitting but erratic Kutuzova then air-mailed a forehand error, giving Gajdosova a winning lead of 6-5.

Serving for the match, Gajdosova built a 30-0 lead, then got tight. After saving a break point and earning a match point, Gajdosova committed two double faults in a row. Facing break point again, Gajdosova sent a backhand long, necessitating a second set tiebreak...

VK serving: Kutuzova steers a backhand wide -- 1-0 GAJDOSOVA

JG: Kutuzova nets her forehand return of a first serve -- 2-0 GAJDOSOVA

JG: Back on serve after Kutuzova hits the corner with a forehand -- 2-1 GAJDOSOVA

VK: Wild forehand return error by Gajdosova -- 2-2

VK: Wind contributes to a Kutuzova double fault -- 3-2 GAJDOSOVA

JG: Defensive backhand error by Kutuzova -- 4-2 GAJDOSOVA

JG: Gajdosova laces a backhand winner down the line -- 5-2 GAJDOSOVA

VK: Kutuzova nets a forehand to bring up a handful of match points -- 6-2 GAJDOSOVA

VK: Mis-hit forehand by Gajdosova sails wide -- 6-3 GAJDOSOVA

JG: Kutuzova saves another match point with a clutch, inside-out forehand winner -- 6-4 GAJDOSOVA

JG: Gajdosova puts in a good first serve, but goes long with a forehand -- 6-5 GAJDOSOVA

VK: Gajdosova's drive off the baseline forces a Kutuzova error to end it -- 7-5 GAJDOSOVA

Jarmila Gajdosova needed four match points and some sketchy play from her opponent to reach the third round of a Slam for her the first time in her young career. Unfortunately for the attractive Slovak, the 6-3, 7-6 win over Kutuzova marked the last success she'd enjoy at this year's Open. Later in the day, she failed to serve out the first set of a doubles match against eventual finalists Dinara Safina and Katarina Srebotnik. (Gajdosova and Bryanne Stewart saw a 5-3 lead turn into a 7-5, 6-1 loss). Safina ended up taking her out of singles as well, by a count of 6-3, 6-0. Gajdosova possesses an impressive serve and powerful groundstrokes, but still has room for improvement in terms of her footwork, fitness, and consistency.

(4) Elena Dementieva vs. Emma Laine
Women's Singles: Second Round
Grandstand

Tuesday's showers were still having an impact on the Open's schedule of play, with all 32 second round women's matches lumped together on Thursday. The backlog was bad enough to bump the # 4 seed from the spacious stadiums into an assignment on the relatively modest Grandstand. Elena Dementieva took it in stride, though, building a 5-3 lead against Finnish lefty Emma Laine. A hold by Laine made it 5-4 and put Dementieva in the unenviable position of serving for the set. Serving remains a notorious adventure for Dementieva, who promptly opened Game 10 with a double fault. It proved only a momentary hiccup, however. Dementieva booked a 6-4 win of the set when a good rally on set point ended with a misfired Laine forehand.

Dementieva departed for a bathroom break...then returned for a service break, taking the first game of the second set. Game 2 featured a crowd-pleasing exchange of volleys, won by Dementieva, who then rocketed an uncharacteristic ace to hold for 2-0. Laine staved off a pair of break chances in Game 3, but was clearly outgunned in the baseline rallies. On the third break point, Dementieva spanked a downright vicious cross-court backhand winner for a 6-4, 3-0 lead.

Given that there's no such thing as an "insurance break" in a Dementieva match, the ensuing hold for 4-0 was significant. Laine, whose visage isn't exactly upbeat under ordinary circumstances, looked particuarly resigned to her fate as Dementieva broke again for a 5-0 lead. Just as she had while serving for the first set, Dementieva opened with a double fault. It was one of only four doubles for her on the day, however, and it was the last point she'd lose. A service winner on match point made it official. Dementieva smiled broadly and launched some autographed balls into the crowd as she savored an efficient 6-4, 6-0 victory.

Ullyett/Rodionova vs. Fyrstenberg/Castano
Mixed Doubles: First Round
Court 15

One of the more appealing matchups on Thursday's order of play pitted Mahesh Bhupathi and Paola Suarez against Kevin Ullyett and Anastassia Rodionova. After all, three of the four are Grand Slam doubles champions...and the fourth, Rodionova, once reached the mixed final at Wimbledon. Alas, to the disappointment of several fans who arrived early at Court 15, Bhupathi and Suarez pulled out. They were replaced by a pair of alternates: Polish doubles specialist Mariusz Fyrstenberg and Colombian veteran Catalina Castano (notable as the last woman ever to lose an official singles match against Martina Navratilova).

The alternates appeared to be in trouble early after Ullyett held in the opening game and Fyrstenberg fell behind 0-40. The Polish/Colombian pair won five straight points, however, holding for 1-1. Castano then opened Game 3 with an ace and grinned from ear to ear. The underdogs were relaxed and finding success by staying back on nearly every return point. Two volley errors in a row by the normally reliable Ullyett allowed Fyrstenberg/Castano to break for a 3-2 lead. That cushion was all the replacement team needed in the first set. Fyrstenberg unleashed two aces in a love hold to close it out 6-4.

Everything went right for Castano and Fyrstenberg in the opening set, but they came unraveled early in the second. Castano's shaky net play burned Fyrstenberg, who dropped serve for 0-2. Game 3 saw the heretofore jovial Fyrstenberg incredulously dispute a call, assuring the umpire one of Rodionova's serves was "like a foot wide, for sure." Across the way, Ullyett and Rodionova were operating like a well oiled machine: making their volleys, putting every return in play, and breaking Castano en route to a 5-0 second set lead.

After a badly struggling Castano dumped another volley midway through Game 6, Fyrstenberg came over and put a reassuring arm around her. He held for 1-5, but the set was still good as gone. Sporting sunglasses and a small brace on her left knee, Rodionova threw down an ace on triple set point to take it 6-1. With the streaking favorites and slumping alternates having split two sets, it would all come down to a first-to-10-points "match tiebreak" (used in lieu of a third set in mixed doubles)...

MF serving: Ullyett knocks off a winning volley; Rodionova says "nice" -- 1-0 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

KU: Rodionova hits a forehand volley right at Fyrstenberg -- 2-0 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

KU: Ullyett jams Fyrstenberg with a body serve -- 3-0 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

CC: Castano blasts an ace down the T -- 3-1 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

CC: Rodionova nets a difficult forehand volley -- 3-2 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

AR: Ullyett aims a volley at Fyrstenberg, who can only deflect the ball wide -- 4-2 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

AR: Fyrstenberg can't dig out a low backhand volley -- 5-2 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

MF: Fyrstenberg's nightmarish tiebreak continues with a double fault into the net -- 6-2 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

MF: Winning backhand volley by Castano -- 6-3 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

KU: Rodionova makes a winning forehand volley -- 7-3 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

KU: Ullyett's gets too cute with a touch half-volley, putting it in the net -- 7-4 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

CC: Fyrstenberg knocks off a forehand volley winner -- 7-5 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

CC: Service winner out wide by Castano -- 7-6 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

AR: Ullyett authoritatively knifes a backhand volley winner -- 8-6 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

AR: Triple match point after Fyrstenberg's backhand return floats long -- 9-6 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

MF: Ullyett's lunging backhand return just misses the sideline -- 9-7 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

MF: Fyrstenberg stays alive with a service winner -- 9-8 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

KU: Ullyett charges forward and powers home a winning overhead smash -- 10-8 ULLYETT/RODIONOVA

Anastassia "The Other A-Rod" Rodionova is garnering something of a reputation as a temperamental diva, which she did nothing to alleviate by blowing off a TV crew's interview request following her first round singles win earlier in the week. She was on her best behavior here, however, and took care of her serve throughout a come-from-behind 4-6, 6-1, (10-8) win.