GOLD COAST, Australia - The new Sony Ericsson WTA Tour season has begun and now the new blogging season begins as well as Bryanne Stewart - the one who started it all from Charleston in the spring of 2006 - writes to us all from the Mondial Australian Women's Hardcourts on the Gold Coast.
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Tuesday, January 1, 2008
Happy New Year!
I hope everyone celebrated in style. I just couldn't stay awake 'til midnight as Jarka and I were on the schedule for the next day, so we took the partying easily. However, the player party went off with a bang and after last night the controversy over whether The King still lives may be revived, because if you didn't know better you would've thought Elvis was back from the dead, sounding better and looking trimmer than ever and belting out all the favorite songs and jiving moves!
The Elvis impersonator known as Dean Vegas jumped on the stage at 11pm and sang 'til the countdown for 2008. Elvis is popular everywhere but I never thought he would be quite as big in countries like Russia and Belarus. Yet he must be all the rage as several players, like Elena Vesnina, Alla Kudrayavtseva and Galina Voskoboeva, all glammed up in summer cocktail dresses and sexy stilettos and soaked up the music. Nadia Petrova led the pack, accepting the invite to join Elvis on stage; however she was outdone by Olga Savchuk, who somehow managed to swap outfits with Dean and take his position as Elvis on stage. Donna Kelso, the Tour Supervisor, kicked up her heels and let out the frustration on the dance floor after another rain delayed day. It's great to see the girls let their hair down and have some fun off the court; I think they should have compulsory player parties for most tournaments so people can see another side of the girls - it gives us an excuse to dress up and mingle with other people.
"Singing in the Rain" was playing again today as we watched it bucket down each time we got close to going onto the court for practice. Our match that was to take place Monday night has now been postponed 'til Wednesday morning at 10am, weather permitting!
Once again I followed the Hopman Cup closely today, and unfortunately the Aussies lost. My future in-laws were cheering them on in the stands as Alicia got them tickets for the match. The Hopman Cup is conveniently on the TVs in the players' areas. I think I need to borrow some of Alicia's tan, as she is absolutely glowing out there and I have been given a new nickname this week - The Milky Bar Kid - due to my pasty appearance. Jarka and I are going to hit the spray tanning salon. We went to make an appointment at the hotel spa but couldn't get in 'til Friday, so I guess we won't be the bronzed Aussie Duo tomorrow. At least most of the Europeans are also a few shades lighter than the last time I saw them too! We all have the excuse of practicing time indoors.
Some of the ball girls had the right idea of how to really make the most of their downtime - they were in the ladies' bathroom choreographing their entrance onto the court to do their job tomorrow. I promised them $10 if they actually did it on our court. I am looking forward to their performance tomorrow.
Until tomorrow!
Bryanne
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Monday, December 31, 2007
I have to admit, I'm a bit of a sucker for gossip and love flicking through the trashy mags on the flights around the world. I'm always ripping out pages of things I want to buy and keeping them in my bag as a little more inspiration to win and have more money to spend shopping around the world. The English ones are great as they come with monthly presents like tote bags that break if you put more than one tennis ball in, or cheap sunnies that I only wear back at home in the pool. Normally there's a collection of mags in the trainers room that players bring in to swap when they are done. On Tour there are always fresh faces popping up on the scene with roles like boyfriend, girlfriend, coach, physio, masseuse; for example, Safina and Garbin have new coaches now.
Today I've spent a lot of time with a cup of tea in one hand and showing off the engagement bling and catching up on all the gossip that's taking place. The constant rain today made for a lot of hang about in the players' lounge and treatment room... Casey Dellacqua's newest entourage member is her new Sony PlayStation, which she bought today after getting one of the drivers to drive her to Pacific Fair (a mall). The driver waited for her while she queued for 20 minutes for a new game. She was even going to see in the new year glued to her hotel room telly while she played games till 2008! That was until I convinced her to join the rest of us in the hotel ballroom for the tournament party, where a special guest will be performing Elvis Presley... I got the scoop from the tournament director, Liz Smylie, whose husband is an obsessed Elvis fan. The performer, whose name is Dean Vegas, has some impressive credentials; not only will he run for the Mayor of Gold Coast in 2008, but a few years ago he was awarded the title of best Elvis impersonator in the world and given the key to Elvis' hometown. I'm looking forward to one glass of bubbly and to boogie with the Aussie Elvis!
Although the rain stopped play on the outside court, on Centre Court was where my doubles partner, Jarka Gajdosova, made her professional debut playing under the Australian flag. In the match today against No.3 seed Safina, both were whacking the ball as hard as possible, much to the delight of the crowd, who christened Jarka's first appearance for her new country. The crowd even gave her the "Aussie Aussie Aussie, Oi Oi Oi" cheer after she won the first set.
Jarka still hasn't decided which state she will play for, although at the moment Victoria has the highest chance as it's the home of her new boyfriend, fellow Australian player Sam Groth. I've caught her checking out realestate.com for beachfront homes in Sydney's trendy suburb of Coogee, so maybe I still have a shot of converting her back to her first love in Australia, Sydney. Jarka will stay at my home next week for the Medibank International, so if we get time I'll get her out and about and make her fall in love with the Harbour City again.
I am off to wish goodbye to 2007 and hello to 2008! Cheers. Wishing everyone a great 2008!!!
Bryanne
