Black Tennis Pros

Horrible, tragic, sad, unbelievable... the death of Whitney Houston in indescribably devastating.  Ms. Houston's over abundance of talent in her gifted voice from God blessed many of our lives including my own.

At the beginning of her career, I witnessed the sheer beauty of her voice. It was difficult to believe the clarity and perfection that I was hearing. I will never forget the moment that she opened her mouth and mesmerized the audience for that moment in time.



Los Angeles (CNN) -- Legendary pop singer Whitney Houston was found dead Saturday at a Beverly Hills, California, hotel, officials said. She was 48.

The entertainer, whose incredible talent was discovered at an early age, was pronounced dead at 3:55 p.m. (6:55 p.m. ET) at the Beverly Hilton hotel despite resuscitation efforts, a police spokesman said.

Beverly Hills Police Lt. Mark Rosen said there were "no obvious signs of criminal intent" and that the cause of her death is being investigated.

Remarks from friends and others:

— "First of all, I want to tell you that I love you all. Second, I would like to say, I love you Whitney. The hardest thing for me to do is to come on this stage." — Houston's ex-husband Bobby Brown, performing a show in Southaven, Miss., hours after her death.

— "I am devastated by the loss of Whitney. We have lost a true angel. My prayers, my heart goes out to her family. We have lost an extraordinary voice to the world. " — singer Lionel Richie.

— "Mine is only one of the millions of hearts broken over the death of Whitney Houston. I will always be grateful and in awe of the wonderful performance she did on my song and I can truly say from the bottom of my heart, 'Whitney, I will always love you. You will be missed." — Dolly Parton, who wrote the original version of "I Will Always Love you," which Houston later sang for the film "The Bodyguard."

— "She had everything, beauty, a magnificent voice. How sad her gifts could not bring her the same happiness they brought us." — Barbra Streisand

— "Heartbroken and in tears over the shocking death of my friend, the incomparable Ms. Whitney Houston. She will never be forgotten as one of the greatest voices to ever grace the earth." — Mariah Carey, in messages posted on Twitter

— "I've known Whitney since she was a little girl and I loved her. She was like family to me. I will miss her." — Smokey Robinson

— "Whitney was the reason many of us do what we do." — Pink, in a Twitter post

— "At the apex of her career, Whitney had no peer, with a voice that shaped a generation. She has left behind a musical and film legacy that will endure.... she will be sorely missed by us all." — Bishop T.D. Jakes, producer of Houston's final film project, a remake of the movie "Sparkle."

— "I think her contribution was her excellence of all levels. She was outstandingly gorgeous, an excellent performer ... Excellent vocalist. She was excellent on some many levels, and set the standard for what it is to be a great female artist." — India.Arie

— "She blessed us with so much greatness in songs that we can never ever forget her." — Producer Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, who worked with Houston

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Frenchman Gael Monfils in quarterfinal match against Finland's Jarkko Nieminen

Gael Monfils, who is currently No. 13 in the South African Airways ATP Rankings and third seed at the Open Sud de France, hit nine aces and lost six points on serve in a convincing 6-3, 6-3 victory over Jarkko Nieminen of Finland in just 54 minutes. Monfils will next face countryman Gilles Simon for their semifinal match.

Monfils reached the Qatar ExxonMobil Open final (lost to Tsonga) in the first week of the 2012 ATP World Tour season. Nieminen dropped to an 8-3 season record, which includes lifting his second ATP World Tour title at the Apia International Sydney (defeated Benneteau) last month.

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(Upper left) Venus and Serena Williams, USA, (lower left) Sloane Stephens, USA, (center) Heather Watson, Great Britain, (right) Simone Pratt, Bahamas.

2012 USA Fed Cup Team

Americans Venus Williams and Captain Mary Joe Fernandez during press conference in Worcester, Massachusetts.

Sloane Stephens, USA during practice.

Great Britain's (r)Heather Watson during practice.

Serena Williams, USA and Victoria Azarenka, Belarus, at Official Draw Ceremony.

Simone Pratt, Bahamas also practicing.

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Serena Williams, left, pulls New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady's jersey out of a box, before putting it back, while making a Super Bowl prediction during a Fed Cup tennis news conference in Worcester, Mass., Tuesday Jan. 31, 2012. Williams, who is part of the Fed Cup team competing against Belarus this weekend in Worcester, decided to pick the New York Giants. At right is US captain Mary Joe Fernandez.

Members of the US Fed Cup team pose with jerseys as they make each make a Super Bowl prediction during a news conference in Worcester, Mass., Tuesday Jan. 31, 2012. From left to right is Christina McHale (New York Giants), Serena Williams (New York Giants), Mary Joe Fernandez (New York Giants) and Liezel Huber (new England Patriots)

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Frenchman Gael Monfils with 2010 Open Sud de France Trophy

Frenchman Gael Monfils won the Open Sud de France in its inaugural year in Montpellier. The World No. 15 defeated Ivan Ljubicic in the 2010 final, and returns bidding to win his fifth ATP World Tour title.
  
Montpellier Targets New Date In 2012

Montpellier, one of the fastest-growing cities in France over the past 25 years, hosted its first ATP World Tour 250 tennis tournament in late October of 2010. The indoor hard court event, which had relocated from Lyon, will now be played from 30 January in 2012 in a multi-purpose venue called the ARENA, which has a total capacity of 14,000 and seating for 7,500 during the tournament.

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2007 USA Fed Cup Team (l-r) Vania King, Lisa Raymond, Venus Williams, Serena Williams

MELBOURNE, Australia -- Venus Williams will return from illness and her sister, Serena, will play Fed Cup for the first time in nearly five years after being selected to the U.S. team to meet Belarus in a Feb. 4-5 World Group II match at Worcester, Mass.

U.S. Fed Cup captain Mary Joe Fernandez announced the team, also containing Christina McHale and Liezel Huber, late Tuesday.

"I am looking forward to having Serena and Venus on the team for the first time since I became U.S. Fed Cup captain," Fernandez said. "They bring so much to this team, not only for what they can do on court, but the influence they will have on Christina and the rest of the team."

It will be Venus Williams' first appearance in a sanctioned competition since the U.S. Open, when she revealed she had Sjogren's Syndrome, an autoimmune disease that can cause fatigue and joint pain.

Serena Williams, who lost in the fourth round at the Australian Open, has not played Fed Cup since 2007.

The 19-year-old McHale, ranked a career-high No. 42, will be making her second consecutive appearance and third overall for the American team. Her highlights last year included a win over No. 1-ranked Caroline Wozniacki at Cincinnati and a run to the third round of the U.S. Open.

South African-born Huber, 35, has won six of her eight career matches for the U.S. Fed Cup team.

The winner of the Worcester match will advance to the World Group playoff and a chance to compete for the Fed Cup title in 2013.

Victoria Azarenka, who is expected to lead the Belarus team, will face defending champion Kim Clijsters in the Australian Open semifinals on Thursday.

"Victoria is playing the best tennis I have seen from her, so we are excited to be facing Belarus in our first match in the United States in two years," Fernandez said.

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2012 Australian Open Junior Girl's Doubles Champions, 15-year-old (l)Taylor Townsend of Stockbridge, Georgia and 15-year-old (r)Gabrielle Andrews of Pomona, California. They defeated Irina Khromacheva of Russia and Danka Kovinic of Montenegro, 5-7, 7-5, 10-6.

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15-year-old American Taylor Townsend takes 2012 Australian Open Junior Girl's Singles and Doubles Titles

It’s not often you get to drop to the ground on Rod Laver Arena and shed tears of joy. It’s one of those once in a lifetime opportunities.

But after 117 minutes in scorching heat on Rod Laver Arena, American Taylor Townsend shed those tears after becoming the 2012 junior Australian Open champion.

Townsend, just 15 years old, put a poor second set behind her to come away a 6-1 3-6 6-3 winner over fiery Russian Yulia Putintseva.

17-year-old Putintseva was clearly devastated by the loss and took her frustration out on her racquet, returning to her chair with a tangled frame and frazzled strings.

She also offered no words during the post-match presentation.

It has been a remarkable tournament for the 14th-seeded Townsend, who took home not only the girls’ singles title but also the girls’ doubles title in her first visit to Melbourne Park.

“It’s really exciting. I mean, it's a dream come true for me,” Townsend said.

“A lot of people were supporting me, and my family and everything are just so proud. It was just a proud moment for me and ... the feelings kind of rushed in.”

Townsend remained the more level-headed player throughout the match, a stark contrast to her feisty – and often vocal – opponent who was not afraid to express her emotions.

“I just kinda tried to focus on myself and just make sure [I] just keep playing one point at a time. That's what I kept telling myself: one point at a time, one point at a time.”

Putintseva trains at the Mouratoglou Tennis Academy in Paris under the watchful eye of former world No.1 Martina Hingis, who joined the academy in 2011.

It was a dream start for the American who raced to a 3-0 lead registering seven winners from her first 12 points won.

Townsend’s mix of powerful groundstrokes from the baseline coupled with pressure created from pushing forward to the net proved too much for Putintseva.

Townsend said her constant willingness to approach the net was all part of an effort for the American to stick to the game she is most comfortable with.

“My expectation was to just go out and play my game and play within myself every match and not really [conform] to the game styles of these other girls by playing at the baseline but, you know, moving forward and being aggressive, how I play.”

Putintseva finally got off the board after holding serve at 3-1 but it was a short-lived spell, as Townsend surged through 12 of the next 15 points to take the opener 6-1.

But the 17-year-old Russian wasn’t about to lie down.

Putintseva stormed through the opening games of the second set and raced to a 4-0 lead, offering herself plenty of verbal encouragement with fist-pumps and comments to her box.

Townsend’s once-flawless play from the baseline started to crumble with shots spraying wide or into the net, and it was the fourth seed’s turn to dictate the play and crunch winners.

Putintseva closed out the second set 6-3.

The deciding set began tightly, but at four-three up and on serve, the American claimed a crucial break of serve and never looked back, closing out the decider 6-3.

And so, after a junior Grand Slam singles and doubles title under her belt, young Townsend said she discovered a lot about herself in the past week.

“Well, I've learned that ... if you just compete and work really hard, anything is possible,” she said.

“You know, the family support and the support of people that are around you is key.”

But that’s not all she’s discovered.

“I also learned that I need to keep myself calm on the court, because that's when I play the best,” she offered with a laugh.

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