Serena jokes about grunting on Letterman

NEW YORK - Serena Williams believes grunting may give players an edge — not that she’s apologizing for the advantage.

Williams appeared on the “Late Show with David Letterman” on CBS on Monday night, two days after beating her sister in the Wimbledon final then teaming with Venus to win the doubles title. Williams joked with Letterman about the cacophony some players make, which was the target of media criticism during Wimbledon.

Asked if the noise can be distracting to quieter opponents, Williams said, “I often wonder that.”

“I’m thinking like we were playing just recently in the finals and Venus and I were grunting really loud in the doubles and the other girls weren’t doing anything,” she added. “And after the point, I was thinking, ’Wow, that was pretty loud. Was that distracting for them?”’

Williams said she was inspired by Monica Seles growing up.

“She’s like the first person that I know that really used to grunt really loud and really hard, so that’s kind of how I modeled my grunt after,” Williams said. “Yeah, because you have to have role models when it comes to grunting.”

She added that grunting “advanced in everything.”

“Like if I play golf, I grunt,” she said. “If I’m playing soccer and I kick the ball, I grunt.”

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Engaged? Kournikova sporting diamond ring

KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. - Anna Kournikova was sparkling brighter than usual.

Kournikova, who has long been linked to singer Enrique Iglesias, showed up for Monday night’s World Team Tennis match with a huge diamond ring on her left ring finger — the finger normally reserved for engagement rings.

When asked the significance of the ring by The Associated Press, Kournikova replied, “I thought you were the good press.” The former Grand Slam doubles champion put her hand behind her back and did not elaborate.

Kournikova was scheduled to play for the St. Louis Aces. She will miss the season with a wrist injury, and wore a protective wrap on her left hand.

She still participated in a kid’s clinic, signed autographs and cheered on her teammates.

ALSO ON THIS STORY  Discuss: Sound off on tennis at Newsvine.com

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Cirstea and Pavlyuchenkova win at Swedish Open

BASTAD, Sweden (AP) -Fifth-seeded Sorana Cirstea of Romania beat Swedish wild card Johanna Larsson 4-6, 6-2, 7-5 in the first round of the Swedish Open on Monday.

Russia's Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova also advanced to the second round of the clay-court WTA tournament, coming from one set down to defeat U.S. veteran Jill Craybas 3-6, 6-3, 6-3 in a rain-delayed match.

Eighth-seeded Iveta Benesova of the Czech Republic defeated Poland's Urszula Radwanska 3-6, 6-2, 6-2.

Carla Suarez Navarro of Spain, Alla Kudryavtseva of Russia and Gisela Dulko of Argentina also progressed to the second round.

Top-seeded Caroline Wozniacki of Denmark will play her first match Tuesday.

Citing hip, Roddick pulls out of Davis Cup

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -Wimbledon runner-up Andy Roddick withdrew Monday from the U.S. Davis Cup team's quarterfinal at Croatia, citing a right hip flexor injury.

The U.S. Tennis Association announced that Roddick wouldn't participate in this week's Davis Cup matches because he was hurt during his loss a day earlier to Roger Federer at the All England Club - a match that finished 16-14 in the longest fifth set in Grand Slam final history.

Roddick slipped and tumbled to the grass in the eighth game of the fourth set Sunday. He stayed down for a few moments, then rose, grimacing, and toweled off.

The 26-year-old American would go on to play for more than another 1 1/2 hours, finally succumbing when Federer broke him for the first time all match in the 77th and last game.

After the match, Roddick was asked whether he hurt himself in that fall, and he replied, "No. It was OK."

He is being replaced on the U.S. Davis Cup team by Mardy Fish, who reached the third round at Wimbledon. Roddick is ranked No. 6, while Fish is No. 23.

When he was asked to play Davis Cup, Fish pulled out of this week's Hall of Fame Tennis Championships in Newport, R.I., where he was the tournament's top-seeded player.

Roddick had played in 18 consecutive Davis Cup matches for the United States, helping the country with the 2007 title.

"Andy has been a stalwart for this team the past nine years, and his dedication to Davis Cup and his teammates is unquestioned," U.S. captain Patrick McEnroe said.

Croatia hosts the U.S. on clay at Porec, Croatia, starting Friday.

"Mardy is a Davis Cup veteran and we appreciate his willingness to join the team on short notice. He has been playing well and we are glad to have him back in the singles lineup," McEnroe said. "Andy had a great run at Wimbledon. He battled for more than four hours yesterday and fought hard to reach the final. Understandably, his body is not up for the rigors of Davis Cup in such a short turnaround."

Fish will be joined in singles action for the U.S. by James Blake, while twins Bob and Mike Bryan will play doubles.

Wimbledon quarterfinalist Ivo Karlovic and Marin Cilic will lead Croatia, which won the Davis Cup in 2005.

"It's worse for us," Goran Prpic, Croatia's Davis Cup captain, said in Porec. "Instead of an injured Roddick, who after such a final at Wimbledon would have had to play matches on clay, we'll have to face a motivated Fish."

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Associated Press Writer Snjezana Vukic in Zagreb, Croatia, contributed to this report.

True Grand Slam possible, Laver says

WIMBLEDON, England (AP) -The last man to win a true Grand Slam in tennis thinks it could happen again.

Rod Laver won all four of the sport's most prestigious tournaments in 1962 and 1969, and he said Sunday at Wimbledon that Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal are both capable of matching the feat.

Invited by the All England Club to attend Sunday's Wimbledon final between Federer and Andy Roddick, Laver said Federer "would have won a Grand Slam if Rafa wasn't there."

Federer won three of the four major titles in 2004, 2006 and 2007. The latter two years, he lost to Nadal in the French Open final.

"The Australian, the U.S. and Wimbledon was pretty easy for him, when you look back at his career, winning three of each one," Laver said. "But Nadal came along and pushed him back."

Federer entered Sunday's match with 14 Grand Slam singles titles, tied with Pete Sampras for the most in history. Federer began the day with five titles at Wimbledon, five at the U.S. Open, three at the Australian Open and one at the French Open.

Roy Emerson won 12 major championships, and Laver won 11, although he was barred from competing in those tournaments from the time he turned pro in 1963 to the start of the Open era in 1968.

Don Budge is the only man other than Laver to win a calendar-year Grand Slam, doing it in 1938.

"It all has to line up in a way that you have to be fortunate to play your best tennis at the right time. That's the way it is," Laver said.

As for the debate about whether Federer might be the greatest player ever, Laver said that's the wrong way to frame the discussion.

"I've always thought that you're the best in your era. That to me is a pretty good compliment to your game, to your tennis, over your career. You know, if Roger gets to 16, 17 Grand Slams, you know, people in the press are the ones that are wanting to say it: Who's the best ever?" Laver said. "It's hard for anyone, I think, to come out and say who's the best ever."

The 70-year-old Laver, a left-hander from Australia who now lives in California, was effusive in his praise of Federer and his game.

"It's amazing what sort of shots he can come with from impossible positions. It's a great feeling of being able to watch the talent that he has and the opponents that he beats comfortably," Laver said.

"It's great that tennis has someone like Roger. We always look at Roger, he and Tiger Woods are good friends, fighting to see who can have the best number of Grand Slams in golf and tennis."

Federer wins French rematch with Soderling

WIMBLEDON, England - The last time they met, a Grand Slam title was on the line, the surface was clay and the weather was chilly and wet.

This time, they played in the fourth round, the surface was grass and the conditions were sweltering.

The result was no different, though, as Roger Federer swept Robin Soderling in straight sets.

Federer outserved the Swede 6-4, 7-6 (5), 7-6 (5) on Monday to reach the Wimbledon quarterfinals — three weeks after downing Soderling in three sets in Paris for his first French Open title.

Winning the big points and never losing serve, Federer extended his career record against the 13th-ranked Soderling to 11-0. He’s dropped only one set to the Swede in 26 sets played.

“When you play a player like Soderling, who you’ve beaten already 10 times in the past, it just shoots through your mind,” Federer said. “All the information is right there, you know, stored somewhere.”

The five-time Wimbledon champion reached his 25th Grand Slam quarterfinal and matched Ivan Lendl with 48 match wins at Wimbledon for a share of eighth place on the all-time list. He’s just three wins away from a record 15th Grand Slam championship and will regain the No. 1 ranking from injured Rafael Nadal if he takes the title.

Federer looks back at home — and back at his best — after a rough period early in the year when he lost to Nadal in the Australian Open final and struggled to find his dominant form.

Now he feels like a new player again.

“Just being relaxed on court,” Federer said. “No signs of panics, what I maybe had six months ago when I played. I would just feel uneasy. I wouldn’t be exactly sure what the right plays were. Now I feel perfect.”

Up next is Ivo Karlovic, the 6-foot-10 Croatian who served 35 aces and beat No. 7 Fernando Verdasco 7-6 (5), 6-7 (4), 6-3, 7-6 (9). Karlovic has yet to lose his serve in four matches, but Federer is 8-1 against him.

 INTERACTIVE 

Spain leaves Nadal off Davis Cup lineup

MADRID (AP) -Top-ranked Rafael Nadal will miss Spain's Davis Cup quarter-final tie against Germany next month.

Nadal, struggling with tendinitis in his knees that forced him to skip his Wimbledon title defence this year, was left off the Davis Cup team announced Tuesday for the matches in Marbella in southern Spain July 10-12.

Coach Albert Costa has called up Fernando Verdasco, David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez and Tommy Robredo, plus Nicolas Almagro as a standby.

Nadal "is not well and we have to let him rest,'' Costa told a news conference.