TWD Saturday 1st Thread/Sports Thread #1 For 6/4/11- 2011 Roland Garros Women's Final Preview

Photo from the AP

The almost two month journey that is the European clay court season can be similar to a semester at school.

Key examinations will come along your way, but nothing will be of more importance than the final overall test. It's the grade that carries the most weight, and a terrific score on it could be the difference to whether you past the class or not. It could also mean whether you excelled to a higher level than any of your peers. The latter scenario is what both Francesca Schiavone and Na Li are seeking for, as both veteran combatants look to ace the final exam of the clay court season, the French Open final.

Coming into Rolland Garros, despite arguably the most wide open field ever, both of the women's finalists were not considered as top favorites to hoist the Lenglen trophy. The early exams on the red dirt showed that Li and Schiavone weren't playing the tennis to make pundits give their confidence in them to win 7 matches in Paris.

The defending champion started off the dirt season by getting thrashed by Aggie Radwanska in Stuttgart, and proceeded to get a more hair raising loss in Madrid, taken out in straight sets by American Bethanie Mattek-Sands. Schiavone showed needed momentum the following week at home in Rome, with a couple of solid wins including a come from behind 3 set effort against Daniela Hantuchova in one of the matches of the entire year. But the opponent she beat in last year's French final, Sam Stosur, got revenge on her in front of her Italian supporters, casing most to still not place full backing in another magic Paris fortnight for Schiavone.

However, that quarterfinal run on home soil gave the 31 year old some needed confidence, and it carried over to a strong performance in the warm up at Brussels, losing only to an inform Caroline Wozniacki 6-3 in the final. Nevertheless, Schiavone finally forced the skeptics of her title defense to truly believe in her here in Paris, with a thrilling 4th Round victory over Jelena Jankovic, and consolidating that with her epic 6-1, 4-1 fightback to conquer Ana Pavlyuchenkova 7-5 in the third.

With the magical feelings from 2010 coming back into her body and mind, Schiavone sealed her return to the Paris final with a clay court masterclass against home favorite Marion Bartoli 6-3, 6-3. It was a display that made most wonder, "How did we push her chances of repeating at Roland Garros so easily aside?"

If Schiavone was lightly considered to be around for the first Saturday in June, than Na Li was another "student" not considered seriously to get the top grade in her class this year. Oh how most of the prognosticators were wrong on this front too.

In a bottom half that consisted of a rusty Kim Clijsters, a Career Slam hopeful in Maria Sharapova, and potential first major winners in Victoria Azarenka and Petra Kvitova, you would have been hard pressed to find any pundit believing Li would be the last one standing from that lower section. It wasn't like she was coming in on some shaky form either, as the Chinese sensation put together strong semifinals appearance in both Madrid and Rome. But convincing losses to Kvitova and Stosur respectively, as well as clay still being Li's worse surface, gave few the belief that she would be a true contender to reach a 2nd straight Grand Slam final.

All the under the radar vibe on Asian's sensation cause a spur in Na's step, showing that it would take two impressive sets to deny her in Paris of full glory. And as of six matches, no one has been able to do that.

Surviving the always difficult Barbora Zahlavova Strycova in a brutal first round, as well as handling talented Romanian Sorana Cirstea easily set the 29 year old on a rematch with Kvitova. And after surviving the impressive young Czech's arsenal with a come from behind 6-3 win in the 3rd, Li was in full confidence mode but still picked to be dispatched by Azarenka in the quarterfinals. Not to ideally let a Sharapova-Azarenka transpired, Na flashed her mental fortitude and wore the Belorussian fully down in an impressive 7-5, 6-2 win.

Getting by young talents like Kvitova and Azarenka who haven't won any Grand Slams is one thing, but getting by the determined Sharapova, desperate to add Roland Garros to her mantle, would be an even more stern test. And Li passed it with flying colors, confirming herself as a mental giant currently on tour with a 6-4, 7-5 win over a visibly frustrated and annoyed Americanized Russian.

Both of these women are unquestionably among the strongest internally on tour, with mentalities that exhibit an ability to survive games, an ability to come back from big deficits, and an ability to close out a big match. Li hasn't faced Schiavone's capricious variety, and the China star has admitted that her Saturday opponent's game does trouble her. That probably will be the key difference in this match, unless Schiavone is not as sharp as she was against Bartoli and stars off the match on a rout as she did Pavlyuchenkova.

It saw be an enthralling final between two stars and students of the game in their own ways, as one looks to place herself as a notable clay court master of the last few years, while the other seeks to give her country and continent a landmark first singles Grand Slam title. Dueling these two will be in the biggest test of the red dirt season, the championship examination that is the Roland Garros final.

Who will get the big, winning grade of A on the red clay?

(The full live match thread will come in a few second.)

But now, here's Luda.....


......And De La Soul:

De La Soul & Q-Tip - Rollerskating Jam by hushhush112