Pat Rafter arena in Brisbane just a few days after the WTA & ATP tournaments.

Petra Kvitova wins the title in Brisbane.

Czech Petra Kvitova has defeated Andrea Petkovic to win the Brisbane International 2011 women’s singles final in straight sets, 6-1 6-3.

Kvitova controlled the match from the outset, stunning Petkovic with her deep and heavy ground strokes.

Petkovic fought back in the second, but Kvitova asserted her authority to claim her second WTA Tour title.

In the men’s semifinals played earlier today, top seed Robin Soderling was too good for Radek Stepanek and second seed Andy Roddick outlasted Kevin Anderson.

Roddick and Soderling on track to meet in the Brisbane final.

Andy Roddick swept aside Marcos Baghdatis in their Brisbane International quarter-final clash on Thursday. The second-seeded American won 6-2 6-3 in one hour 14 minutes against the fifth-seeded Cypriot. Roddick broke four times as his opponent managed just 39% of first serves.

South Africa’s Kevin Anderson also progressed to the last four with a 2-6 6-3 6-4 win over Colombian Santiago Giraldo. Top seed Robin Soderling saw off Michael Berrer in their second-round match. The Swede was a 6-3 7-6 (9/7) winner over his German opponent in one hour 35 minutes. Eighth seed Denis Istomin went out, though, as Australia’s Matthew Ebden claimed a 6-4 6-4 win.

In the women’s tournament, fourth seed Marion Bartoli made short work of Barbora Zahlavova Strycova to reach the semi-finals. The Frenchwoman broke six times on her way to a 6-2 6-1 win over the Czech in just under 90 minutes. Fifth-seeded Russian Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova joined Bartoli in the last four thanks to a 6-2 6-7 (4/7) 6-3 victory over Lucie Safarova, while Czech Petra Kvitova also made it through with a 6-0 6-4 success over Dominika Cibulkova of Slovakia.

Roddick will meet Baghdatis in Thursday’s quarter final.

Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis will get an early indication of his form leading into the Australian Open when he meets second seed Andy Roddick in the quarter final of the Brisbane International on Thursday night. Baghdatis booked a date with Roddick after crushing Poland’s Lukasz Kubot 6-2 6-2 in just over an hour on Pat Rafter Arena on Wednesday night.

The win catapults the 25-year-old into yet another quarter final and he has continued on from his solid 2010 season. He made the quarter final or better in 11 tournaments last year and was the only player to beat Raphael Nadal and Roger Federer while they were No.1 during the season.

Baghdatis said getting the opportunity to play highly ranked players in Australian Open lead-up tournaments was the perfect preparation for the year’s opening Grand Slam event. “It’s nice to play guys like Andy – top 10 players,” Baghdatis told reporters. “It’s a test match before the Australian Open and it will be a great match. “It’s nice to get out there and see my negative things, positive things all the things I need to work on. “It’s a good test tomorrow because it’s Andy Roddick and he’s going to push me to the limits.”

Is it time for Dokic to call it quits?

Jelena Dokic has crashed out of the Brisbane International 6-0 6-1 to German Andrea Petkovic in a severe blow to her confidence ahead of the Australian Open. Dokic lasted just 46 minutes on Pat Rafter Arena as she struggled with all parts of her game. World No.32 Petkovic danced her signature jig at the end of the second round encounter which brought nothing but torment for Australia’s former world No.4. Dokic had promised much better after she progressed through the first round of the tournament with a straight sets victory over Russian Anastasia Pivovarova on Monday night. Helped by a string of unforced errors from the crowd favourite, Petkovic took the first set in just 17 minutes, icing the 6-0 scoreline with an ace. Dokic lost 10 straight games to be 4-0 down in the second set before breaking the German, who was previously guided by Dokic’s new coach Glenn Schaap. But the world No.138 gave the break straight back as she conceded the last of her six double faults in the sixth game. Petkovic easily closed out the match to set up a quarter-final clash against Melbourne’s Jarmila Groth who upset top seed Samantha Stosur 6-2 6-4 on Tuesday night.

Apart from Stosur, Dokic is the third Australian woman to bow out of the tournament in the second round after Sally Peers lost 6-4 6-1 to Czech Barbora Zahlavova Strycova on Wednesday.

Sam Stosur fails again at home as Groth wins in 78 minutes.

Jarmila Groth reeled off the final five games to bundle stunned top seed Samantha Stosur out of the Brisbane International on Tuesday night. Groth used her giant serve to slay her fellow Fed Cup squad member, the world No.6 suffering a blow to her Australian Open preparations with a 6-2 6-4 defeat in 78 minutes. The 23-year-old Melburnian sent down seven aces in the opening set and nine for the match to potentially set up an all-Australian quarterfinal clash with Jelena Dokic, who on Wednesday faces German Andrea Petkovic.

After an ugly start to the match in which she lost her first two service games and ultimately the set 6-2, Stosur staged the fightback you would expect from a top seed. She broke the world No.42 in the second game of the second set as she opened up a dominant 4-1 lead. The match seemed all but destined for a third and deciding set before a dramatic change came across the clash. Groth punished Stosur’s second serve while also stepping up her own service game to reel off five straight games and win the match with the second of three set points.

Stosur’s tale of woe was clear in the statistics. She won just eight of 23 second service points in the second set and paltry 10 of 35 for the match. The win will be a huge confidence boost for Groth, who is not seeded at the tournament, while it has also opened up the main draw following the demise of second seed Shahar Peer on Tuesday. Groth has twice advanced to quarterfinals at the Brisbane International but went no further in 2007 and again last year.

Verdasco’s slump continues as he loses to Becker in 1st round.

Benjamin Becker upset third-seeded Fernando Verdasco 6-1, 6-7 (2), 6-3 Tuesday in the first round of the Brisbane International. “It’s always good to get a win under your belt … it’s not every day you beat a top 10 player,” Becker said. “I had a good game plan and it worked well today.” Becker, ranked 53rd, raced through the first set in 30 minutes, with Verdasco failing to hold serve until the sixth game. The 27-year-old Spaniard, the 2009 Brisbane runner-up, recovered a break in the second set and leveled the match by winning the tiebreaker but dropped his opening service game in the third set and Becker didn’t let him back into the match.

Radek Stepanek, the 2009 champion and runner-up here last year, beat Germany’s Tobias Kamke 5-7, 6-1, 6-4, while South African Kevin Anderson beat Australia’s Peter Luczak 6-4, 6-4 and veteran Frenchman Arnaud Clement went down in straight sets to Richard Berankis of Lithuania.

Czech Lucie Safarova reached the women’s quarterfinals for the third straight year when she beat second-seeded Shahar Peer of Israel 3-6, 6-1, 7-5 in 2 1/2 hours. The former Australian Open quarterfinalist is the girlfriend of 2010 Wimbledon runner-up Tomas Berdych. “Of course people ask me about Tomas, but so far it (Berdych’s success) is motivating me to do better and to try to reach a better level of tennis,” Safarova said.

Russian No. 5 seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova also won her second round match, beating Serbian Bojana Jovanovski 6-2, 7-5.

In women’s first-round matches, Italy’s Roberta Vinci had a 6-2, 7-6 (2) win over American Christina McHale, a late replacement for Fed Cup champion Flavia Pennetta, who withdrew due to sickness.

Sally Peers scores an upset on dy one!

Wild card Sally Peers caused an upset in the first match of the 2011 season as the Australian defeated seventh seeded Russian Alisa Kleybanova 3-6 6-4 6-3 in the first round of the Brisbane International at the Queensland Tennis Centre. Peers, ranked 154 in the world, recovered from a set and a break down to defeat her 25th-ranked opponent. Also in the first round, Serbian Bojana Jovanovski beat Australian Anastasia Rodionova 2-6 6-2 6-3.

Another naturalised Australian, world number 42 Jarmila Groth, reached the second round with a 6-2 7-5 victory over Spaniard Arantxa Parra Santonja. Number five seed Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova defeated fellow Russian Alla Kudryavtseva 6-2 6-7 (5/7) 6-3 and Czech world number 30 Lucie Safarova beat Uzbek Akgul Amanmuradova 6-3 3-6 6-2.

In the men’s first round sixth seed Feliciano Lopez, of Spain, beat Germany’s Philipp Petzschner 6-4 7-6 (11/9). Uzbekistan’s Denis Istomin was a winner over Thiemo de Bakker, of the Netherlands, by a 7-6 (7/5) 6-4 score.

Sam Stosur & Andy Roddick will donate $100 per ace to Queensland flood victims!

Sam Stosur is donating $100 from every ace she serves at the Brisbane International to the Queensland flood victims. Her pledge has already been supported by Andy Roddick who will also give $100 for every ace he serves. Stosur knows from personal experience the damage floods can cause. “The way the people of Queensland have been affected by the floods is really close to my heart,” Stosur said. “I only remember a few details of what happen to my family in 1987 but it turned our way of life upside down and was devastating to my family. “We lost everything, photos, furniture, all our possessions apart from what we were wearing. It could have been a lot worse as my younger brother’s cot was completely submerged in water but he was in my parent’s bed that night. “I also remember Daniel diving for my mum’s wedding ring which she lost in the water – he found it. “I guess this is why I felt it is important for me to try and give something back. “I am Queenslander and I want to help even in a small way. When you are in this kind of situation every little bit helps and I hope my small contribution does just that.”

Brisbane International Tournament Director Steve Ayles said Stosur’s initiative was typically thoughtful of her. To help kick-along the fund-raising he pledged $5000 from the Brisbane International. “From the coverage I have seen these floods have caused so much heartache for many Queenslanders and we want to make some sort of contribution to helping ease the pain. “

Bernard Tomic awarded a wildcard to Brisbane Int.

Teenager Bernard Tomic has been granted the last main draw wildcard into the Brisbane International. Tennis Australia Head of Men’s Tennis, Todd Woodbridge said the decision on the wildcard was made after consultation between he and the other selectors, Davis Cup captain Pat Rafter and AIS head coach Brent Larkham. “We have granted it to Bernard because he is a young talent who we want to get some matches,” Woodbridge explained. “While he has been training very hard and this is obvious in his physical development, nothing can replicate matches and being match hardened. Bernard now has an opportunity to get some matches. We want him to get as much top quality tennis as possible in the next couple of weeks to show his form and fitness.”

Brisbane International Tournament Director Steve Ayles said Tomic was a welcome addition to the line-up. “He is an outstanding young talent and of course he is a Queenslander. We are delighted to have him in the event,” Ayles said. Marinko Matosevic and John Millman were also given wildcards into the Brisbane International main draw. There is expected to be some hot competition for the two remaining main draw wildcards into the Australian Open. “Bernard is one of a handful of players who are under consideration for a wildcard for the Australian Open. The final decision will be based on which players show that they are the most deserving.” Woodbridge said.